Hack the Planet – Solving global challenges using pragmatic engineering

Taking on global challenges with pragmatic tech

EldersVR, battling loneliness

Smart sensors catching poachers

Using VR to create empathy

Autonomously flying glider

technology • global challenges

Hack The Planet takes on global challenges using pragmatic tech

about us

Many courageous organisations are taking on major humanitarian and sustainability challenges. Hack The Planet offers these organisations new perspectives on challenges, accelerating their efforts by creating and implementing smart and pragmatic technologies in collaborative projects

powered by q42

Hack the Planet is a department within Q42, a strategic technology agency based in the Netherlands. Or as we like to say: we’re 80 nerds who like to make things with impact. Things that make people smile. With the support and extensive knowledge and experience of Q42, Hack the Planet can take on important global challenges and battle them with pragmatic tech.

our partners

our projects

Some of our current projects are listed below, ranging from anti poaching projects, to battling loneliness within the elderly population.

HACK THE POACHER

One of Africa’s most urgent challenges is often overlooked; its name is poaching.

EldersVR

In the Netherlands alone, over 1.000.000 seniors are classified as lonely.

MEET THE SOLIDER

Meet the Soldier is a humanitarian VR documentary in Karamoja, Uganda.

PROJECT SKYHAWQ

A fully autonomous flying glider plane that can be used in many different situations.

100 REPORTERS

Almost all NGO supporters find it harder and harder to reach out and get involved.

GROUND HAWQ

A low-cost 3D-printed, self driving robotic platform carrying an array of objects.

News & stories

9th October 2019

The elderly population in the Netherlands has only increased since the 1950s and continues to grow into the biggest group within the Dutch population over the coming decades. Despite the...

How virtual reality is making a difference for lonely elderly

2nd September 2019

And it’s an armed war – between poachers and rangers. A war between a $70 Billion dollar industry driven by the Asian demand for animal parts and a small group...

There’s a war going on outside

29th November 2017

Why we build the 100 Reporters app Recently we spoke with several of our NGO partners and we found out that something odd was going on. All of the NGO...

Boost your post!

17th November 2017

When you think about virtual reality (VR) gaming, you probably can come up with a number of popular, entertaining games that are being played all around the world. The game...

Not your average VR game

the team

Tim van deursen

Tim van Deursen founded Hack the Planet. Tim is an engineer on a mission to make a positive contribution to the world. He wants to super charge (high)tech ideas and concepts needed to solve global challenges. Tim believes many challenges we nowadays have can benefit from smart and easy to deploy technology. “Technology can and needs to be part of solving global challenges therefore, with Hack The Planet we are making this happen”.