On September 11-13, 2026, Rice University in Houston, Texas hosted their 16th annual competition called HackRice, where Jeevan Parajuli and Pankaj Bhatta placed in the top five out of 119 projects.
HackRice is an annual hackathon that brings together creators, developers, and designers to develop and showcase their creative and entrepreneurial talents. This competition is a great networking opportunity for students, where they can receive internship and job offers, and learn about modern tools and systems.
Parajuli and Bhatta teamed up to create their project “Casey,” which combines several emerging technologies, including ElevenLabs for interactive voice conversations, Google Gemini for AI-powered reasoning challenges, and TigerData for a shared leaderboard.
“We are very proud of Jeevan Parajuli and Pankaj Bhatta for representing ULM Computer Science at HackRice 16 and for having their project selected among the top five out of 119 projects,” said Dr. Pransanthi Sreekumari, Associate Professor of Computer Science.
Parajuli and Bhatta were able to present Casey to the judges and a large audience, and although they did not win the competition, they achieved a significant accomplishment. This experience also gave them the opportunity to observe other teams and how they approached real-world problems, which will contribute to their technical and professional growth.
“We are extremely thankful to the ULM Computer Science Department, especially Professor Sreekumari, for supporting us throughout this opportunity,” Parajuli and Bhatta said. “From the beginning, when we shared our interest in attending HackRice 16, Professor Sreekumari supported and encouraged us. The Computer Science department assisted us with travel authorization, funding arrangements, and the overall process of participating in the hackathon."
"We are also very grateful to the College of Business and Social Sciences for helping make this opportunity possible. This was a meaningful experience for us, and we truly appreciate the encouragement, trust, and support we received from the department and the college.”
To learn more about the HackRice competition, visit hackrice.com.