NASHVILLE, TENN. (May 8, 2026) — The Human Rights Foundation is pleased to sponsor the AI Hack for Freedom II, taking place May 9–10 in Nashville, Tennessee.
This AI-powered hackathon will bring together eight human rights and democracy advocates with top open-source software developers to build digital tools that support movements operating under repression. These activists have faced surveillance, censorship, exile, and imprisonment. They will present the urgent challenges confronting their work along with solutions shaped by firsthand experience. Each will serve as a team captain, working with developers to guide the development of these tools from concept to implementation using vibe coding, an AI-assisted approach that allows individuals to build functional applications by describing what they want in plain language.
Crucially, given the rapid evolution of AI tools, for this Hackathon the activists will be able to lead the coding of their own projects, whereas at the first edition of this event 4 months ago, they were limited to telling developers what kind of app they wanted to build.
The event will be hosted by AI Freedom Lab, a community dedicated to ensuring AI tools serve individual freedom, at Bitcoin Park, a campus in Nashville dedicated to support and accelerate the grassroots freedom tech movement. The top three projects will respectively win $25,000, $15,000, and $5,000 in bitcoin, with $1,000 awarded to other participating teams. Standout tools will be considered by the AI Freedom Lab for future funding to ensure continued development of promising solutions for human rights defenders.
To prepare to lead the hackathon, activists took part in an “Agent Camp” held in San Diego from May 5–8. This intensive program was put together by HRF and Finite, a company dedicated to making frontier AI accessible to non-developers. Activists deployed and ran their own coding and personal agents powered by open-source technology like Hermes, OpenClaw, and OpenCode using the Finite.Computer software. Participants learned to use AI to accelerate their work, expand their capabilities, and operate effectively in resource-constrained environments.
Meet the team captains:
Félix Maradiaga
President, World Liberty Congress
Félix Maradiaga is an opposition leader from Nicaragua and a former political prisoner. After running for president, he was detained and tortured for 611 days in the infamous El Chipote prison by Daniel Ortega’s regime. Since his release and exile, he has remained an advocate for democracy and accountability in Nicaragua and now presides over the World Liberty Congress, where he supports political activists defending democracy globally.
Roya Mahboob
President and Co-Founder, Digital Citizen Fund
Roya Mahboob is an Afghan tech entrepreneur and a prominent advocate for empowering women through technology in the country. As Afghanistan’s first female tech CEO, she founded Afghan Citadel Software Company, where she created employment opportunities for Afghan women who faced systemic barriers to work and banking access. Although she was forced to leave Afghanistan, she still supports women’s and girls’ digital literacy and economic empowerment through her nonprofit, the Digital Citizen Fund.
Joey Sui
Hong Kong activist
Joey Siu is a Hong Kong pro-democracy activist who faced targeted repression for her key role in the 2019 Hong Kong protests. Despite being forced to flee and resettle in the United States, she continues to advocate tirelessly for human rights in Hong Kong and around the world. In December 2023, the Hong Kong national security police issued a HK$1 million bounty (around $128,000 USD) for her arrest on charges of “colluding with foreign forces.”
Fadi Elsalameen
Palestinian anti-corruption advocate
Fadi Elsalameen is a Palestinian anti-corruption activist and outspoken critic of corruption within the Palestinian Authority. For his criticism, he has faced intimidation, harassment, and fabricated legal charges. Now living abroad, he continues to advocate for transparency and democratic reform while supporting Palestinians on the ground, including by sending aid through alternative financial tools such as Bitcoin.
Lilian Tintori
Venezuelan pro-democracy activist
Lilian Tintori is a Venezuelan human rights activist who launched a global campaign for the release of her husband, Leopoldo López, a Venezuelan opposition leader imprisoned by Maduro’s regime for his role in pro-democracy protests. Today, Lilian continues her advocacy through the World Liberty Congress, where she supports the families of political prisoners and helps them advocate for the release of their loved ones.
Anaïse Kanimba
Director, Africa Bitcoin Institute
Anaïse Kanimba is a Rwandan human rights activist and survivor of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. After her biological parents were killed, she was adopted by Paul Rusesabagina, who sheltered and saved more than 1,200 people in his hotel. His heroism inspired the movie “Hotel Rwanda.” Kanimba led the #FreeRusesabagina campaign after he was kidnapped, imprisoned, and later released by Rwanda’s dictator Paul Kagame. She now serves as the Director of the Africa Bitcoin Institute, where she advances Bitcoin-based solutions for African communities facing financial and political repression.
Srdja Popović
Executive Director, Center for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS)
Srdja Popović is a Serbian political activist who co-founded Otpor!, a nonviolent student movement that helped overthrow the authoritarian regime of Slobodan Milošević. He later founded CANVAS, a nonprofit that equips pro-democracy movements with tools and strategies for nonviolent resistance, including planning, coalition-building, and financial resistance using Bitcoin. Through CANVAS, Popović has trained over 16,000 activists across 52 countries.
Jhanisse Vaca-Daza
Freedom Fellowship Director, Human Rights Foundation
Jhanisse Vaca-Daza is a Bolivian human rights activist and co-founder of Ríos de Pie, a nonviolent citizen movement that has mobilized communities against government repression and environmental destruction. She now serves as the Freedom Fellowship Director at HRF, where she supports activists confronting repression under authoritarian regimes.
We look forward to sharing the prize-winning projects from Nashville with you early next week and to update you on future Agent Camps and Hackathons coming later this year.
