This Project submitted to Philly Codefest 2026
Project: Mayday
Project Type: Advanced
Location: H12
Mayday is an AI-powered, offline-first emergency mesh network that helps Philadelphia respond to danger faster by turning nearby phones into a decentralized safety system.
Mayday is an AI-powered community safety network built for Philadelphia. When someone is in danger, they can trigger a silent alert that spreads through a Bluetooth mesh network, even in places with no signal like SEPTA underground stations or dense campus buildings. The system shares live location, uses AI to summarize what’s happening from audio and user input, and gives nearby witnesses, security teams, and dispatchers real-time context through a live dashboard. By combining resilient offline communication with intelligent incident analysis, Mayday helps first responders act faster and with better information.
Mayday is built as a SwiftUI iOS app using Apple’s MultipeerConnectivity framework for the Bluetooth mesh network, with CoreLocation, AVFoundation, and AppIntents for live location, audio capture, and silent emergency triggers. On the backend, it uses a Node.js and Express dispatch dashboard with Leaflet maps, deployed on Vercel.
Selected Prizes
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"You can't fix what you can't see."
Philadelphia has connectivity gaps — and most of them go unreported until someone's already frustrated. Your mission: build an AI that predicts where connectivity complaints will spike before they happen. Using public FCC broadband data, open speed test datasets, and neighborhood demographic data, create a tool that gives internet providers and city planners a heads-up, not a catch-up.
What we're looking for:
- Predictive modeling using real public datasets
- A map or dashboard that makes the insight actionable
- Bonus points for surfacing equity patterns (who gets left behind and why)
Judge's gut check: Would a field ops team actually use this on Monday morning?
Prize
Visit to Comcast to present your project -
The Culture and Community Innovation Award recognizes a team whose project strengthens shared culture and fosters meaningful community connection. This award celebrates creative efforts that bring people together, reflect and uplift a wide range of experiences, and build environments where collaboration, belonging, and collective growth can thrive.
