heypcb Hardware Challenge 2026
heypcb pays two $1,000 prizes for original circuit boards published on Circuit World. Entries close 30 November 2026.
The heypcb Hardware Challenge is an online board design contest. heypcb offers $2,000 in prizes. There are two winners. One prize of $1,000 goes to the board with the most likes when entries close. The other $1,000 goes to the best board, picked by the heypcb team from every entry. Each prize is $500 in cash and $500 in heypcb credit. A board can win only one prize. Both winners are also guaranteed an internship at heypcb and an interview for a founding engineer role.
Anyone with a heypcb account can enter, including a free trial. There is nothing to buy. Each person gets one entry. If you publish a second board, the first entry is withdrawn. You can build with collaborators. The person who publishes is the entrant. You design the board in heypcb and publish it to Circuit World with the entry box ticked. A fork counts only if you add substantial design work of your own and describe it.
Entries close on 30 November 2026 at 11:59pm Pacific Time. Like counts stay hidden until then, except that each entrant can see their own count. A tie for most likes goes to the board that entered first. Winners are announced by 7 December 2026. The rules page records a change on 10 October 2026 that hid like counts, and an earlier change on 6 October 2026 that added the best board prize and moved the deadline to 30 November.
Quick answers
Can a team enter?
Yes. Collaborators can work on one board together. The person who publishes the board is the entrant, and each person gets one entry.
What is in each prize?
Each prize is $1,000, split into $500 in cash and $500 in heypcb credit. Both winners are also offered an internship and an interview for a founding engineer role.
Can I start from someone else's board?
You can fork a board on Circuit World if you add substantial design work of your own and describe it. Republishing someone else's design as your own is removed.