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Finding Sponsors via Devpost

Devpost is the most widely used hackathon submission platform. Every hackathon that uses it has a public page listing their sponsors — with logos, often with links, and sometimes with contact information. This is one of the most underused sponsor research tools available to student organizers.

The key insight: companies that have already sponsored a hackathon will sponsor another one. They've already approved the spend category internally. You're not convincing them hackathons are worth sponsoring — you're just asking them to do it again for your event.

How to find sponsors on Devpost

Method 1: Browse recent hackathons directly

  1. Go to devpost.com/hackathons
  2. Filter by: Status → Recent and Eligibility → Open to all (or your region)
  3. Click into any hackathon that's similar in size or theme to yours
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the hackathon page — sponsors are listed there with logos
  5. Click each sponsor logo; most link to the company's website

Look for hackathons that are: - Similar scale to yours (a 50-person school event can target companies that sponsored other 50-person events — not MLH flagship sponsors) - In your region (local companies are more likely to say yes) - In adjacent fields (a sustainability-focused hackathon's sponsors are good targets if your event has any overlap)

Method 2: Search for specific company names

If you already have a target company in mind:

  1. Go to devpost.com/hackathons and search the company name in the search bar
  2. Or Google: site:devpost.com "[company name]" sponsor
  3. This shows you every public hackathon they've sponsored — giving you proof of prior spend and sometimes the name of the team that manages it

Method 3: Look at your region's hackathon history

  1. Search Devpost for hackathons in your city or state from the past 2 years
  2. Build a list of every company that appeared as a sponsor across those events
  3. These are your warmest cold leads — they've sponsored locally before

Building your target list

Once you have a list of companies from Devpost, organize it:

Company Hackathons sponsored (from Devpost) Their website Contact found? Status
Acme Corp HackXYZ 2024, TechFest 2025 acme.com jane@acme.com Emailed

Finding the right contact at each company:

  • Look for a "Developer Relations," "Community," "University Recruiting," or "Sponsorships" team
  • LinkedIn: search [company name] developer relations or [company name] university recruiting
  • Many hackathon sponsors list a contact email on their own website under "Sponsor a hackathon" or "Community"
  • If you can't find a specific contact, sponsorships@[company].com or devrel@[company].com often work

The pitch email for Devpost-sourced leads

This is different from a cold email because you have proof they've done this before. Use it.

Subject: [EVENT NAME] Sponsorship — you sponsored [HACKATHON NAME] last year

Hi [FIRST NAME],

I'm [YOUR NAME], organizing [EVENT NAME] at [SCHOOL NAME] on [DATE] — a [one-day / weekend] student hackathon with [NUMBER] expected participants.

I noticed [COMPANY NAME] sponsored [HACKATHON NAME] on Devpost [last year / in 2024]. We're a similar-scale event and I'd love to talk about whether [COMPANY NAME] would be a fit for ours.

We're looking for sponsors at the $[AMOUNT] level in exchange for [logo on site / table at event / mention at ceremony].

Would you be open to a quick call this week?

[YOUR NAME] [SCHOOL], [EMAIL], [PHONE] [SCHOOL ADDRESS]

To opt out of future outreach from [EVENT NAME], reply "unsubscribe."

The reference to their prior sponsorship dramatically increases response rates. You're not asking them to take a chance — you're asking them to repeat a decision they already made.

What to notice on Devpost sponsor pages

When you look at a hackathon's sponsor section, pay attention to:

  • Tier placement — sponsors listed higher or with bigger logos paid more. This tells you their budget range for this category.
  • Repeat sponsors — if a company appears on 3+ hackathons, they have an active program. High-value target.
  • Track sponsors — companies that sponsored a specific track (e.g., "Best Use of AI") are often more accessible than top-tier cash sponsors. They're spending smaller amounts from a product/developer budget, not a big marketing budget.
  • In-kind sponsors — companies that provided swag, API credits, or hardware (not cash) are often the easiest to approach. Their donation doesn't require executive approval.

What to avoid

  • Don't copy-paste the same email to 50 companies at once. Personalize the Devpost reference for each one.
  • Don't target sponsors from huge events (HackMIT, PennApps) for a 50-person school event. Their minimum sponsorship tier is probably $5,000+.
  • Don't email more than 3 times (see cold-start-outreach.md for the full sequence).

Devpost vs. other sources

Source Warmth Effort Best for
Devpost sponsor pages High — proven spend Low — 1 hour of research First target list
LinkedIn search Medium Medium Finding the right contact
BuiltIn[City] / AngelList Low — cold Medium Expanding beyond Devpost
Personal network Highest Low Use first if available

Start with Devpost. It's the closest thing to a warm lead list that's publicly available to any organizer.

Part of the Equity Pack. See also: Cold-Start Sponsor Outreach.