Minister Clement Starts the Clock for CODE 2015

News Release

Government of Canada promotes the value of open data through the Canadian Open Data Experience

February 20, 2015 – Toronto

The Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE) gets under way tonight, with over 1100 participants from across Canada. CODE 2015—a 48-hour open data appathon supported by the Government of Canada—challenges developers, students, and open data enthusiasts to race against the clock to transform federal government datasets into useful, consumer-friendly applications.

Minister Tony Clement started the countdown at the main competition Hub in Toronto this evening by announcing the specific themes, Healthy Living, Youth Employment, and Business Opportunities, to help teams focus their energy on how best to apply the vast array of datasets on Canada’s Open Government Portal, open.canada.ca. This coding weekend, which coincides with International Open Data Day (February 21), is an example of how the Government of Canada is supporting open data and demonstrating leadership in a world-wide movement toward open government.

Events like CODE 2015 bring together bright minds with the skills required to create fresh apps. New applications benefit Canadians, and can also lead to new start-ups or exciting opportunities with IT companies. In 2015, CODE promises to once again demonstrate the great potential to extract value from Government of Canada datasets.

Quick facts

The Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE) takes place from Friday, February 20 to Sunday, February 22, 2015.
CODE is hosted by XMG Studio, one of Canada’s largest independent mobile gaming studios.
Participants are encouraged to mash up federal datasets with those from the provincial and municipal levels. Innovative use of multiple datasets and sources will be considered in the judging process.
Participants can compete from one of the three VIP Hubs (located in Toronto, Montréal, and Vancouver), community hubs (located in Ottawa, Hamilton, Québec City, Sarnia, Calgary, London, Victoria, and Fredericton), or virtually from schools, coffee shops, or their own homes.
Winners will share a total of $40,000 in prizes from private sector sponsors, with a grand prize of $15,000. Prize money will also include $5,000 for each of the following categories:
- Youth
- Commerce
- Quality of Life
- Best Student Team
- Fan Favourite
The top 15 teams will pitch their applications on March 16 in Toronto. The winners will be announced in a Grand Finale on March 26, also in Toronto.
This is the second year for the CODE appathon. Last year CODE engaged over 900 participants across the country, and resulted in over 110 apps.
Open Data, along with Open Information and Open Dialogue, form the three major pillars of Canada’s Action Plan on Open Government 2014–16.

Quotes

"Last year, I was impressed by the wealth of creative talent displayed by CODE participants. The significant value that can be added through the re-purposing of our Government of Canada data never ceases to amaze me. My expectations for CODE 2015 are quite high, and I’m confident this year will be even more exciting. Good luck to all the teams! I look forward to meeting the CODE 2015 winners of our national appathon."

– Tony Clement, President of the Treasury Board

"The Canadian Open Data Experience is a great example of how talented and creative Canadians can work with government to create new applications with the potential to improve our lives. Our government knows that Canada has a wealth of talent when it comes to technology and innovation, and competitions like these lead to growth, job creation and investment in our IT sectors."

– James Moore, Minister of Industry

"Ideas and the start-ups that grow out of these ideas are the lifeblood of Canada’s digital economy. But the best ideas often don’t emerge from a single person—they’re the result of collaboration. The CODE hackathon is an unorthodox, unpredictable, entirely thrilling means of encouraging Canada's creative talent from coast to coast to coast to collaborate and for 48 hours come up with ways to hacktivate the Government’s federal open data and accelerate innovation. I couldn’t be more excited to see what our best and brightest minds from Nunavut to Vancouver to Halifax can create using open data—sit tight and prepare to be amazed!"

– Ray Sharma, Founder and Chairman, XMG Studio Inc.

"CODE 2015 is an incredible opportunity for Canada’s best and brightest talent to come together, get access to Government of Canada open datasets, develop a minimum viable product in a condensed period of time, and walk with an opportunity to potentially commercialize an idea that can have a significant impact on the quality of life of Canadians from coast to coast. There are few opportunities that can have such a significant impact on an individual’s life."

– Bilal Khan, Managing Director of OneEleven

Related products

Current and past blogs on CODE:

Associated Links

Media contacts

Heather Domereckyj
Press Secretary
Office of the President of the Treasury Board
613-957-2666

Media Relations
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
613-957-2640

TTY (telecommunications device for the hearing impaired) – 613-957-9090

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Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Science and Technology

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Minister Clement Starts the Clock for CODE 2015

News Release

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