Md Athar Jamal Makki, 22
The Open-Source Catalyst, Building Practical Software for All
Driven by an insatiable curiosity for how things work, Md Athar Jamal Makki transformed a late start into a masterclass in rapid execution. Fascinated by emerging technology from a young age and fueled by a long-standing ambition to found a tech company, Athar initially channeled his passion into researching and writing about artificial intelligence and startups in 2023 when access to hardware was limited. But as soon as he acquired his first laptop in May 2024, he dove in headfirst. To build a rigorous technical foundation, he mastered computer science fundamentals through CS50x. By July 2025, overcoming severe imposter syndrome, Athar took a leap of faith by registering for his first Major League Hacking (MLH) hackathon, teaming up with a high school developer to earn a surprising victory.
That experience unlocked a whole new dimension of coding for Athar. It showed him that software development is at its best when driven by intrinsic curiosity - building in an environment that encourages experimentation where, even if you fail, you fail forward. Viewing hackathons as the ultimate launchpad to rapidly test ideas, products, and startup visions, he embraced these competitions as a real-time sandbox where curiosity and a willingness to try matter far more than experience. That proactive mindset catalyzed an extraordinary competitive streak, propelling him to earn five hackathon wins in quick succession. At the Midnight Hackathon, he and his team built BrickChain - a decentralized application that leverages Midnight zero-knowledge cryptography to turn real estate into fractional, private, and instantly tradeable digital tokens. This build captured the top prize, leading to acceptance into a 10-week MLH Fellowship incubator and an invitation to join the Midnight Build Club pre-seed accelerator program. There, Athar reached a major milestone by pitching BrickChain directly to Charles Hoskinson, co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Cardano - a defining moment that validated his venture vision.
Athar’s rapid transition from a struggling learner to a high-output hacker quickly inspired those around him, prompting him to turn his personal achievements into active mentorship. When nervous classmates called him mid-competition asking basic developer setup questions, Athar responded with detailed voice notes guiding them through system setups, learning tools, and pitch structures. His direct advice helped guide multiple student teams to podium finishes, reinforcing his belief that showing up is what matters most: “It's always a win win [because] you always learn.”
This commitment to multiplying community impact expanded into organizing and industry engagement. Athar organized and hosted a full-fledged hackathon during his college fest - managing online and offline rounds for an event that drew between 4,000 and 5,000 total fest attendees. Later, as an intern with the Midnight Foundation, he built an AI harness to judge project submissions and co-hosted official developer workshops alongside industry engineers. In this role, he took on direct advisory responsibilities to guide incoming builders: "I had the privilege of helping founders build privacy-focused startups by reviewing their code and advising on product vision and strategy."
To establish a permanent space for student builders to engineer practical software together, Athar co-founded Luxion Labs, an open-source development community and lab. His philosophy was simple: “Why not build the app you use yourself daily? Instead of complaining this app is bloated or that [it] compromises privacy. Let's build the things you use daily - open source.” Putting that vision into practice, his team created and launched Pulm, a production-grade note-taking application designed to prioritize user privacy.
Now studying at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, Athar continues to turn individual builder curiosity into collective momentum through Luxion Labs, while proving that no matter your background, skill level, or available resources, there is always a place for you in the hacker community. His journey serves as a powerful reminder that when you know what you want and give it your absolute best - “magic happens.”
Quick Facts
Md Athar Jamal Makki, 22
The Open-Source Catalyst, Building Practical Software for All
Driven by an insatiable curiosity for how things work, Md Athar Jamal Makki transformed a late start into a masterclass in rapid execution. Fascinated by emerging technology from a young age and fueled by a long-standing ambition to found a tech company, Athar initially channeled his passion into researching and writing about artificial intelligence and startups in 2023 when access to hardware was limited. But as soon as he acquired his first laptop in May 2024, he dove in headfirst. To build a rigorous technical foundation, he mastered computer science fundamentals through CS50x. By July 2025, overcoming severe imposter syndrome, Athar took a leap of faith by registering for his first Major League Hacking (MLH) hackathon, teaming up with a high school developer to earn a surprising victory.
That experience unlocked a whole new dimension of coding for Athar. It showed him that software development is at its best when driven by intrinsic curiosity - building in an environment that encourages experimentation where, even if you fail, you fail forward. Viewing hackathons as the ultimate launchpad to rapidly test ideas, products, and startup visions, he embraced these competitions as a real-time sandbox where curiosity and a willingness to try matter far more than experience. That proactive mindset catalyzed an extraordinary competitive streak, propelling him to earn five hackathon wins in quick succession. At the Midnight Hackathon, he and his team built BrickChain - a decentralized application that leverages Midnight zero-knowledge cryptography to turn real estate into fractional, private, and instantly tradeable digital tokens. This build captured the top prize, leading to acceptance into a 10-week MLH Fellowship incubator and an invitation to join the Midnight Build Club pre-seed accelerator program. There, Athar reached a major milestone by pitching BrickChain directly to Charles Hoskinson, co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Cardano - a defining moment that validated his venture vision.
Athar’s rapid transition from a struggling learner to a high-output hacker quickly inspired those around him, prompting him to turn his personal achievements into active mentorship. When nervous classmates called him mid-competition asking basic developer setup questions, Athar responded with detailed voice notes guiding them through system setups, learning tools, and pitch structures. His direct advice helped guide multiple student teams to podium finishes, reinforcing his belief that showing up is what matters most: “It's always a win win [because] you always learn.”
This commitment to multiplying community impact expanded into organizing and industry engagement. Athar organized and hosted a full-fledged hackathon during his college fest - managing online and offline rounds for an event that drew between 4,000 and 5,000 total fest attendees. Later, as an intern with the Midnight Foundation, he built an AI harness to judge project submissions and co-hosted official developer workshops alongside industry engineers. In this role, he took on direct advisory responsibilities to guide incoming builders: "I had the privilege of helping founders build privacy-focused startups by reviewing their code and advising on product vision and strategy."
To establish a permanent space for student builders to engineer practical software together, Athar co-founded Luxion Labs, an open-source development community and lab. His philosophy was simple: “Why not build the app you use yourself daily? Instead of complaining this app is bloated or that [it] compromises privacy. Let's build the things you use daily - open source.” Putting that vision into practice, his team created and launched Pulm, a production-grade note-taking application designed to prioritize user privacy.
Now studying at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, Athar continues to turn individual builder curiosity into collective momentum through Luxion Labs, while proving that no matter your background, skill level, or available resources, there is always a place for you in the hacker community. His journey serves as a powerful reminder that when you know what you want and give it your absolute best - “magic happens.”
