2025 prizes up to ₹2,90,000 / ₹2,32,800 / ₹1,74,400 (before tax); top three teams could interview for internships (2027 batch) or full-time roles (2026 batch)
About 12 weeks from registration to winners (2025: 5 June to 29 August); idea submission with a 2-minute demo video, then a virtual jury round
Teams of 2 to 4 engineering students in India (2025: UG, master's or dual degree in ECE, EE, EEE, IT, CS, Math, Data Science or AI, graduating 2026 or 2027). Walmart and Converge partner employees excluded.
2027-06
Table of Contents(7 headings)
Sparkathon is an open innovation challenge run by Walmart Global Tech India for engineering students. Teams pitch a tech idea for retail, and the best ones present to a Walmart jury. Winners got cash prizes and the chance to interview for an internship or a full-time role.
Status on 30 October 2026: there is no 2026 edition. Walmart's Sparkathon page still showed the 2025 edition as "closed for registrations" in June 2026, past the point where the 2025 edition had already opened, and the page now returns a "not found" error. We could not find any announcement of a 2026 contest. If Walmart brings it back, expect registration around June or July 2027, since the last two editions opened in mid-July 2024 and on 5 June 2025.
Walmart Sparkathon at a glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Run by | Walmart Global Tech India, as part of its Converge tech event |
| Who can apply (2025) | Engineering students in India graduating in 2026 or 2027 |
| Branches (2025) | ECE, EE, EEE, IT, CS, Math, Data Science and AI |
| Team size | 2 to 4 students |
| Format | Idea and 2-minute demo video, then a virtual pitch to a jury |
| 2025 prizes | Up to ₹2,90,000 / ₹2,32,800 / ₹1,74,400 |
| Hiring link | Top 3 teams can interview for internships or full-time roles |
| 2026 edition | Not announced |
| Careers page | Walmart Global Tech careers |
Eligibility
These are the rules from the 2025 terms and conditions, the last edition Walmart ran.
- Open to student teams from engineering colleges in India.
- Branches: Electronics and Communication, Electrical, Electrical and Electronics, Information Technology, Computer Science, Math, Data Science and AI.
- Teams of two to four. You can't change members after you start, and you can join only one team with one idea.
- Undergraduate, master's or dual degree students graduating in 2027 who finish in the top three can interview for an internship. Those graduating in 2026 can interview for a full-time role.
- Employees of Walmart and of partners working on Converge can't take part.
In 2024 the batches were different: aggregator site Jobinsider reported B.E., B.Tech and dual degree students from the 2024 and 2025 batches, and M.E. and M.Tech students from the 2024 batch. The window moves with each edition, so check the batch line first if the contest returns.
How the contest works
- Pick a theme. 2025 had four: reimagining customer experience, transforming retail supply chains, creating a sustainable future, and building trust in retail with cybersecurity.
- Describe the problem and your solution. Explain why the problem matters in retail and what your solution does.
- Upload a two-minute demo video. Put it on YouTube as unlisted and add the link to the form. You can't edit the entry after you submit.
- Jury round. Shortlisted teams present to a grand jury online. Winners are invited to Converge to receive the award in person.
Walmart judges on innovation, creativity and scalability, technical feasibility, impact and benefit to Walmart, and the quality of the proof of concept and demo. This is not a timed DSA contest, so a working prototype and a clear video matter more than competitive programming.
One point to read before you enter: the terms give Walmart a royalty-free, perpetual licence to use what participants build, for its own internal and commercial purposes.
Prizes and roles
| Edition | Winner | 1st runner-up | 2nd runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Up to ₹2,90,000 | Up to ₹2,32,800 | Up to ₹1,74,400 |
| 2024 | Up to ₹2,90,000 (reported by Jobinsider) | Not published | Not published |
Prizes are subject to tax deduction. Every team with a valid submission got a certificate. The bigger draw is the interview: Walmart says winning teams can interview for internships or full-time roles at Walmart Global Tech India, subject to its hiring criteria, and that it has no obligation to make an offer. For what Walmart pays interns through its regular route, see our Walmart Sparkplug internship guide.
Past timelines
| Stage | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Applications open | 15 July | 5 June |
| Last day to apply | 16 August | 14 July |
| Finalists announced | 30 August | 29 July |
| Winners announced | 20 September | 29 August, at Converge |
How to apply if it returns
Past editions took entries only through Walmart's own Sparkathon page on public.walmart.com, with questions answered at converge@walmart.com. Walmart's rules did not mention any fee or third-party platform. If you see a "Sparkathon 2026" or "2027" post on a job site, look for the same official page before you share your details. Meanwhile, the regular route into Walmart Global Tech India is its careers site and campus hiring.
What changed over the years
- The contest was earlier called the SparkTech Showcase, and Walmart's page title still used that name in 2025.
- 2024 themes were data, supply chain, emerging tech and future of retail (reported by Jobinsider). 2025 moved to customer experience, supply chains, sustainability and cybersecurity.
- The 2025 edition opened about six weeks earlier than 2024, on 5 June.
- 2026 had no edition, and the official page has been removed.
More contests that lead to jobs: hackathons and hiring challenges and summer internships. Current Walmart openings are on talentd.
Cover photo: Embassy TechVillage Kadubeesanahalli metro station (Apr '25) by Sameer2905, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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About the Author
Azhar Khan
Founder | Editor | Senior Fullstack Engineer
Azhar Khan is the founder of Talentd, and a Sr. FullStack Engineer, currently working for USA Fintech company. Passionate about helping people find their dream jobs and grow their careers.
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