Blog
Field notes
Writing on innovation sprints, building, and the Swiss tech scene.
August 29, 2026
From organizer to owner
Running sprints inside a student organisation and running them as a company look identical from the outside. Almost nothing behind them is the same.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
August 19, 2026
What builders take forward
The sprint ends on Sunday. The interesting question is what is still there on Wednesday.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
August 12, 2026
One hackathon we ran came out almost 50% women
The uncomfortable part: we did nothing to make that happen. Which means it was luck. And luck does not repeat.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
August 2, 2026
The word hackathon is keeping the right people out
Say it to a designer, a lawyer, a doctor. Most of them hear the same thing: that's for IT people. The invitation starts with the name.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
July 10, 2026
The unsolved problem at hackathons: judging
36 hours of building. One minute to pitch. The format has matured; the judging has not.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
June 18, 2026
The story that stays with me
A team came to solve someone else's problem. They left with the proof that they could build their own.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
June 11, 2026
Why we're building sprintd
It's not the most profitable thing I could be doing. It's the most aligned with what I care about: enabling people.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder
May 26, 2026
Innovation sprint vs hackathon: what's the difference?
They look the same from the outside. The difference is what the weekend is built around, and what you walk away with.
Alexandros Riggenbach · Co-Founder