Hackathon powered by
Building in Cincinnati, Ohio
A day-long build sprint at MidwestCon 2026 in Cincinnati, September 8-11, 2026. Build onsite or live on Zoom, and leave with 30 days of Theanna free.
Virtual is free · Onsite is $50 — MidwestCon access, EmpowerHer breakfast + Friday food
An official MidwestCon 2026 program
Theanna is running the women founders' build sprint inside MidwestCon 2026, the 5th annual AI conference hosted by Disruption Now in Cincinnati, OH.
Onsite in Cincinnati or live on Zoom. Same clock, same energy, same support. Pick the room that works for you and come ready to build.
Choose how
you build
Everyone who builds gets 30 days of Theanna free
founders
Not another AI conference. A platform for what's next.
MidwestCon is the Midwest's 5th annual AI conference for builders, policymakers, founders and creators: four days of hands-on Claude Code and Microsoft AI training, policy sessions, and creative AI, September 8-11, 2026 in Cincinnati, OH. Hosted by Disruption Now across 1819 Innovation Hub · Memorial Hall · Digital Futures Building. Our build sprint and the EmpowerHer breakfast run inside it.
- EmpowerHer, the curated breakfast for women founders, professionals and investors
- Hands-on Claude Code and Microsoft AI training tracks
- Policy sessions with senators, representatives and city leaders
More happening at MidwestCon
Your onsite ticket puts you inside the whole conference. Beyond the buildathon and EmpowerHer, here's what else is on.
AI Skills + Certification
Hands-on Claude Code and Microsoft AI. Build three deployable workflows and earn a certificate of completion.
Artistic Intelligence
Create music and direct video with Suno and Google Veo3 alongside live facilitators.
Future of Work K–16
Practical AI integration frameworks for educators, from kindergarten through college.
Policy Innovation Lunch
Direct dialogue with senators, congressmen, and government leaders on AI for citizens.
Disruptors Dinner
Invitation-only dinner with the Midwest's most influential enterprise and institutional leaders.
Intensive AI Transformation
Disruption Now's AI transformation program, normally $5,000, included in the Learning Pass.
How the day runs
The Buildathon runs the length of Day Three as one continuous build. It is a signature session at MidwestCon 2026, hosted by Nomiki Petrolla of Theanna and Kaila Love, GoalGetters.ai.
- 10:30 AM
Opening ceremony
The challenge, the rules, and the teams. Everyone starts from the same brief.
- 11:00 AM
One continuous build
Heads down with your team. Mentors circulating, lunch on site, no one building alone.
- 2:30 PM
Closing ceremony and reveal
Teams reveal what they built in the age of AI, and the winners are named.
Builders, hackers, and anyone who would rather ship than watch. Plus everyone who wants to catch the reveal.
Two ways to build
Same buildathon, same energy. Choose the one that works for you.
Build onsite in Cincinnati
Join us at MidwestCon in Over-the-Rhine. One $50 ticket covers general conference admission, the EmpowerHer founders breakfast, food throughout Friday, and the onsite buildathon.
- MidwestCon general admission (normally $100+)
- EmpowerHer founders breakfast
- Food throughout Friday
- The onsite buildathon
Build with us on Zoom
Can't make it to Cincinnati? Join live on Zoom. You get the same instructions, the same clock, and the same support as the room.
- Live instructions and Q&A on Zoom
- Same build window, 10:30 to 3:00
- Free to join
EmpowerHer
A curated breakfast for women founders, professionals, and investors. Intentional programming with confirmed capital participation, not a networking mixer. Real stories, real referrals, real follow-up calls.
Moderated by Nomiki Petrolla, Founder of Theanna.
Nomiki Petrolla
Founder, Theanna
Nomiki founded Theanna to give women building tech companies an operator in their corner. She's speaking at MidwestCon 2026 and moderating the EmpowerHer breakfast, and she's bringing the buildathon so founders leave the weekend with something real, not just notes.
Who you'll build alongside
MidwestCon 2026 drew 77 speakers and mentors across 347 organizations last year. A few of the founders and leaders you'll share the days with:
Noelle Russell
CEO & Founder, AI Leadership Institute
Kaila Love
Founder & CEO, GoalGetters.ai
Brittany Roberts
Founder, Kaleidoshift (ex-Meta)
Seema Alexander
Co-Founder & President, Virgent AI
Camille Smith
Founder & CEO, STEM So(ul)cial
Helen Todd
Co-Founder, CincyAI for Humans
Deborah Coviello
The Drop In CEO, Illumination Partners
Rob Richardson
Founder & CEO, Disruption Now
Plus policymakers including Sen. Bernie Moreno, Rep. Greg Landsman, and Mayor Aftab Pureval. See the full lineup.
What you walk away with
Not a to-do list. Real progress, a plan, and a tool to keep going.
30 days of Theanna, free
Every registrant gets 30 days on the Ideator tier so you can keep building long after the clock runs out.
A plan before you build
Use Theanna to pressure-test what you're building and map the plan first, so your 4 hours go into the right thing.
Four focused hours
A clear start, a clear finish, and a room of founders on the same clock. You leave with real progress, not a to-do list.
Strategize with Theanna. Build with Replit.
Two tools doing two different jobs. One keeps you pointed at a customer who will pay. The other gets the product live before the reveal.
Strategize with Theanna
Know who you are building for before you build it, and keep the thread after the clock stops.
- Lock your ideal customer profile and positioning
- Turn the sprint into milestones you can keep working
- Keep pipeline, next actions and build log in one place
30 days on the Ideator tier, free for everyone who registers.
Build with Replit
Get the thing running in a browser tab. No local setup, no environment to fight before you start.
- Build and deploy from the browser, nothing to install
- AI assistance that writes and edits alongside you
- Leave the sprint with a live URL you can show people
3 months of Replit access, worth $60, for every builder. Activation September 9.
1819 Innovation Hub
MidwestCon 2026 is hosted at the University of Cincinnati's 1819 Innovation Hub, the anchor of Cincinnati's Innovation District. It is where startups, students, corporate partners and researchers build side by side, right in the heart of the city.
1819 Innovation Hub · Memorial Hall · Digital Futures Building · Cincinnati, OH (Over-the-Rhine)
Hotel Celare, Cincinnati Midtown
MidwestCon 2026 holds a room block here. Overlooking the University of Cincinnati campus, a short walk from the 1819 Innovation Hub and minutes from Over-the-Rhine.
Book at the conference rateReserve your spot
Build with us at
Join free on Zoom. Registering gets you three months of Replit Core and a free month of Theanna Ideator.
How are you joining?
Questions
Who is this for?+
Founders and builders who have an idea and want a focused block of time, and a plan, to move it forward. You don't need to be technical to join.
When and where is it?+
The buildathon runs Friday, September 11 during MidwestCon 2026 in Cincinnati, OH (1819 Innovation Hub · Over-the-Rhine, Cincinnati). The exact time goes out by email after you register.
What does the onsite ticket include?+
One $50 ticket covers MidwestCon general admission (normally $100+), the EmpowerHer founders breakfast, food throughout Friday, and the onsite buildathon.
What's the difference between onsite and virtual?+
Onsite is in Cincinnati, OH at MidwestCon — the $50 ticket above. Virtual is free and runs live on Zoom with the same instructions and support, but without the conference, breakfast, or food.
Do I need to bring anything?+
Just a laptop and the idea you want to work on. We'll set up your Theanna access on the day so you can plan before you build.
How long is it?+
Friday, September 11, 10:30 AM to 3:00 PM. It opens with a ceremony setting the challenge, the rules and the teams, then runs as one continuous build, and closes with the reveal at 2:30 PM where the winners are named.
What do I get after?+
Everyone who registers gets 30 days of Theanna free on the Ideator tier to keep building past the event.
The build sprint is one session of four days
MidwestCon 2026 runs September 8-11, 2026 across 1819 Innovation Hub · Memorial Hall · Digital Futures Building. Seven programs, keynotes, training tracks and policy sessions, with the Friday, September 11 build sprint and EmpowerHer breakfast inside it.