PolarFire FPGA Design Contest 2026
Microchip and DigiKey run a global FPGA design contest with three hardware tracks and cash prizes. Team proposals are due October 3, 2026.
The PolarFire FPGA Design Contest 2026 is run by Microchip Technology with DigiKey. Teams design projects in AI acceleration, edge computing, robotics and embedded systems on PolarFire FPGA boards.
There are three tracks, each tied to one development kit. Track 1 uses the PolarFire SoC Discovery Kit for compact edge systems. Track 2 uses the PolarFire SoC Icicle Kit for connected real time systems. Track 3 uses the PolarFire Splash Kit for high speed fabric designs. Each team enters one track only.
Each track has a Winner who gets a USD $2,000 prepaid card and a Runner Up who gets a USD $1,000 prepaid card. One more USD $1,000 prepaid card goes to the best overall innovation across all tracks. Prizes are split evenly among team members.
Teams have 2 or 3 members, and each member must be at least 18. The rules list countries and regions whose residents cannot enter, among them Brazil, Italy, Spain, Singapore, Turkey and the Province of Quebec. Check the official rules before you register.
The team lead registers with a myMicrochip account on the contest page and submits a project proposal in English. Registration and proposals close on October 3, 2026 at 11:59 PM PDT. The judges pick the top 25 teams in each track between October 5 and November 28, 2026. Selected teams may receive a free development kit.
Semi finalists build their projects from November 30, 2026 to March 27, 2027 and submit a design paper and a demo video. Final judging looks at code and implementation, innovation and the video. Winners are announced on May 15, 2027.