I’m thrilled to share my recent experience participating in the Boston Hackathon, a weekend filled with coding, collaboration, and innovation! Alongside a brilliant team of developers: Simon, Amado, and Joseph we created AstroTunes – a mood-based music recommendation app designed to support mental well-being in high-stress and isolated environments.

🚀 The Inspiration Behind AstroTunes
In environments like outer space, where astronauts are often isolated from their loved ones for extended periods, maintaining a positive mental state is essential. Inspired by the emotional and therapeutic power of music, we wanted to build something that would provide astronauts with personalized music recommendations based on their current mood, helping them stay balanced and motivated during challenging missions. Thus, AstroTunes was born – an app that brings comfort and energy through music tailored to your feelings.

💻 Building AstroTunes

We used React to craft a responsive frontend that adapts beautifully to any screen size, making it easy for users to explore and engage. On the backend, we leveraged Node.js to connect to the Spotify API, creating a dynamic system that curates playlists based on mood-specific energy and positivity parameters. Each time a user selects a mood, AstroTunes instantly retrieves and delivers mood-matched playlists through real-time API calls.
To enhance accessibility, we also developed a mobile component specifically for Android, using Android Studio IDE and Kotlin. This addition allows AstroTunes to bring tailored music recommendations directly to users' phones, making the experience smooth and adaptable on the go.

🌍 A Visit to TripAdvisor

At the end of the hackathon, I visited TripAdvisor, my favorite travel website. It combines the best of travel and algorithms, inspiring me to see how technology can enhance real-world experiences.

🍁 Boston itself was breathtaking this time of year, with all the beautiful fall foliage adding to the experience. The vibrant colors around us felt like the perfect backdrop for creative energy, inspiring us as we tackled every challenge and brainstormed late into the evening.

A big thank you to everyone who made the event so memorable! The chill background music and the great vibes created the perfect setting for creativity and collaboration.

The results of the hackathon are yet to be announced, but regardless of the outcome, it was an incredible experience to be part of it.

Github