Codex, but make it weird. Hahahacks.

# Codex, but make it weird: Highlights from OpenAI's Haha Hacks **TL;DR:** OpenAI's "Haha Hacks" is a playful hackathon challenging developers to use Codex to create absurd, whimsical, and hilarious projects, showcasing the AI's creative coding potential. ## Welcome to Haha Hacks: A Hackathon for Fun OpenAI hosted "Haha Hacks," a special hackathon focused not on productivity or efficiency, but on the creation of "funny, absurd, and whimsical" things. The event was framed as a playful challenge, with participants given access to the **Codex Pro plan** to bring their most imaginative and mischievous ideas to life. The goal was to surprise the world with creativity and humor. ## The Projects: From Practical Giggles to Absurd Inventions The hackathon showcased a variety of quirky projects, each using Codex in a unique and often silly way. ### The "Shoe Removal Alert" System One project tackled domestic etiquette with a sensor-based system. The rule was simple: "Please remove your shoes at my door." The system detects when someone enters and removes their shoes, triggering a flashing green light to signal that a guest has properly entered the home. It’s a humorous take on home automation for politeness. ### The Playful, Anticipated Mailbox Another team aimed to transform the mundane act of checking the mail. Their project turned a boring mailbox into a "truly exciting device" that people would look forward to opening. The twist? It was designed to elicit a chuckle or a light laugh once opened, adding a moment of unexpected joy to a daily routine. ### The Pinhole Vision Correction Lens One participant shared a personal challenge: weak vision in their left eye, making it hard to see distant text. The solution was a custom-made lens with a **micro pinhole**. After wearing this specialized lens, the creator could suddenly read distant text clearly again, though they noted the effect was only functional for the left eye at the time. ### The Lie Detector That Douses You with Water Perhaps the most comically direct project was an app designed to detect lies. Upon identifying a false statement, the system would trigger a mechanism that poured water from above, simulating the effect of a sudden, sweaty panic. The app combines speech analysis with a physical, humorous consequence for dishonesty. ## The Role of Codex in Creation Across these projects, **OpenAI Codex** served as the core creative partner. One participant described the seamless process: after outlining the entire project concept to the AI, "it just generated a great app." This highlights how Codex can rapidly translate even the most whimsical ideas into functional code, acting as a catalyst for playful experimentation. The hackathon concluded with a round of applause for all the creators, celebrating the "truly, truly, truly" fun and entertaining projects they built. The event underscored a key application of generative AI: not just solving serious problems, but also fostering creativity, humor, and a bit of beautiful absurdity. Source: [Codex, but make it weird. Hahahacks.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2f9bBlGOuX4)