Events

Caribbean AI Summit 2026 Comes to San Juan

Two days at the Convention Center, a hackathon with $10,000 in prizes, and a clear job for builders: ship something useful for Puerto Rico.

Adam Beguelin

By Adam Beguelin

Wednesday, September 23, 2026 • Code Puerto Rico

Holberton Coding School Puerto Rico · Caribbean AI Summit (PRAIC)

Caribbean AI Summit 2026 promotional banner with the Puerto Rico Convention Center at night
Caribbean AI Summit 2026 — October 9–10, Puerto Rico Convention Center, San Juan. Image: Caribbean AI Summit / caribbeansummit.ai

In October the Caribbean’s biggest in-person AI conference lands in San Juan. Caribbean AI Summit 2026 (organized with the Puerto Rico AI Community, PRAIC) runs Friday, October 9–Saturday, October 10 at the Puerto Rico Convention Center (doors about 8:45am; program roughly 9am–6pm).

Holberton Coding School Puerto Rico is proud to be a sponsor! We’ll be there with a booth and some fun AI demos. We’re also providing volunteers from our students and grads.

This is not a spectator sport. The useful question is simple: what are you going to make?

What’s on the calendar

Two full days of talks and tracks — business, technical, and learning — plus the hallway conversations that actually move projects. Official details live at caribbeansummit.ai. Tickets are on Eventbrite (and linked from the site). Check live prices before you buy — public tiers have moved during the year.

Night view of the Puerto Rico Convention Center with neon light trails
Venue hero from the summit site: Puerto Rico Convention Center, Isla Grande. Image: Caribbean AI Summit / caribbeansummit.ai
  • Summit: Fri–Sat, Oct 9–10, Puerto Rico Convention Center, San Juan.
  • Hackathon: “AI for Puerto Rico,” during the Summit, in person.
  • Prizes: $10,000 total — 1st $5,000 · 2nd $3,000 · 3rd $2,000.
  • Ticket: a Summit ticket is required to hack; join the hackathon waitlist after you have one.
  • Teams: small teams (check the live hackathon page for current size rules). Solo sign-ups can still join the waitlist.

The hackathon is the point for builders

If you only have bandwidth for one track, make it the build. Mentors on the floor. Judging on what you ship for Puerto Rico — not a slide deck about what you might ship later. Pedro Cruz is the Hackathon Director on the public program. Pedro is amazing. If you have ever been to a Pedro Cruz event, you will remember. I’m sure this hackathon will be one to remember.

El Morro fortress graphic from the Caribbean AI Summit hackathon page
Hackathon visual from the summit site. Waitlist opens after you have a Summit ticket. Image: Caribbean AI Summit / caribbeansummit.ai

Holberton students: this is a natural extension of how we learn — projects under deadline, teammates you just met, something demoable on a stage. Bring a laptop. Bring a problem you already care about. Leave with a repo and a story.

We’ve been warming up for this

In July, Code Puerto Rico ran AI for Executives: What Matters Now at Aloft San Juan — a shorter afternoon for business leaders with live demos and straight talk, not vapor. That was our own session, separate from the Summit. Speakers on the flyer: me, Vincent Guarino (San Juan Export Services), and Will Rosellini (Darrow Industries).

Flyer for AI for Executives at Aloft San Juan on July 9, 2026
July 9, 2026 — Aloft San Juan. A practical AI session for executives; different room, same island. Flyer: Code Puerto Rico / Holberton

The Summit is the larger stage. Same island. More builders in one building. Better chance to meet the people who will hire, fund, or ship with you next year.

Holberton mark from the Caribbean AI Summit community partners grid
Holberton on the summit Community Partners and Collaborators grid. Asset: Caribbean AI Summit / caribbeansummit.ai

What to do this week

  1. Buy a Summit ticket via caribbeansummit.ai or Eventbrite — confirm the live price.
  2. If you’re hacking, join the hackathon waitlist as soon as you have the ticket.
  3. Sketch one problem in Puerto Rico you’d actually build for. Healthcare ops, small-business tooling, civic data, language, logistics — pick something concrete.
  4. Tell one other builder. Show up with a teammate if you can.

We’ll post again after the event with what Holberton shipped and who you should know. Until then: get the ticket, find your teammates, and show up ready to build.

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