ACM hosts hackathon to make energy and health care more transparent

Designing the future of the energy and health care sectors in just 24 hours. Does that sound too good to be true? We do not think so. That is why the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) will host an ‘Open Market Hack’ or hackathon on Thursday, December 1, and Friday, December 2, 2016. Anyone who is interested in participating can sign up at www.openmarkethack.nl. The team with the best idea will be awarded a grand prize of EUR 2,000.

The idea is to have dozens of creative and innovative developers, designers, experts and students challenge each other for 24 hours to try and make the energy and health care sectors as transparent as possible. In that way, ACM wishes to gain insights as to how to make energy and health care more transparent for consumers and businesses. For example, hackathon participants will explore how public databases can be linked to each other safely yet creatively. ACM also wishes to obtain insights about how others confront and tackle complex problems.

Bart Broers, program director of ACM’s Health Care Taskforce, explains: “Our hope is that the hackathon will generate novel ideas that can help the energy and health care sectors become more transparent and accessible.”

Tackling a problem about health care or about energy

Hackathon participants will be given a choice between tackling a problem about health care or one about energy. In the health care sector, consumers have access to a lot of data that is publicly available to them, but they cannot see the wood for the trees. As a result, they are often unable to make the right choices between health insurers or between health care providers. With regard to energy, ACM wishes to make it easier for consumers to find their way in the energy transition process. In this sector, too, a lot of data is publicly available. How can we make sure that the supply of energy is sustainable, secure, and affordable?