Shipwrecked was a four-day hackathon held on Thompson Island in the Boston Harbor from August 8 to August 11, 2025.
The initial qualification requirements for attendees involved coding four projects totaling at least 60 hours, with each project requiring a minimum of 15 hours. An additional requirement was that at least one project had to achieve a predefined "viral" status. These requirements were subject to change in the months leading up to the event.
The event did not offer a base stipend for travel. Instead, attendees could earn funds toward flight costs by coding for hours beyond the initial 60-hour requirement, at a rate of $10 per additional hour. A separate, need-based stipend option required a total of 100 coded hours and mandated that all earned virtual currency be spent on stipends or accommodation.
The event operated using a virtual currency called "Shells." This currency was earned by coding beyond the 60-hour requirement, with the conversion rate determined by the formula: shells = hours * 10 * φ, where φ is the golden ratio. This resulted in an exchange rate of approximately 16.1803398875 shells per additional hour of coding.
A "Shell Shop" allowed attendees to exchange their shells for goods and services. When initially launched, the shop offered pre- and post-event accommodation, a $10 travel stipend, and the ability to add 1% to a communal "island progress" bar. Most items used a variable pricing system, with the exception of a "Donate to the Void" option, which had a fixed price of 1 shell. The final item catalog, updated by August 14, included the following: