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#EUvsVirus – Digital Badges at Scale
When the EU Commission launched the #EUvsVirus hackathon, the goal was clear: Unite thousands of innovators to solve challenges brought on by the COVID-19 crisis. But digital events come with a catch — they lack the tangible sense of participation we’re used to from physical gatherings.
How do you give 21,000 remote participants that “I was there” moment?
To bridge that gap, organizers partnered with Virtualbadge.io to roll out custom-branded event badges. Each badge acts like a digital name tag — personalized, verified, and ready to be shared.
What started as a symbolic gesture became a viral social proof engine.
Within just 4 days, over 20% of all participants shared their badge on LinkedIn and other networks.
That’s 4,200+ organic testimonials — each reaching highly relevant, professional audiences.
And all of it is fully automated via Virtualbadge.io.
When the European Commission launched the #EUvsVirus Hackathon in April 2020, it quickly became one of the most ambitious virtual events of the pandemic era. More than 21,000 participants from across Europe and beyond came together online to tackle the urgent challenges posed by COVID-19. But as with many large-scale digital events, one key element was missing: a sense of real-world participation and recognition.
To bridge this gap, the organizing team partnered with Virtualbadge.io to bring a surprisingly familiar tool into the virtual space: the event badge.
Unlike traditional printed name tags, these badges are fully digital — but just as personal. Participants could generate their own custom-branded digital badge with just a few clicks. The system automatically pulled in their profile photo (via LinkedIn or another platform), and offered fields to specify their team name, challenge category, and area of expertise. This allowed every badge to reflect both the participant’s role and their contribution to the event.
But these weren’t just visual mementos. Virtual badges became a powerful engagement engine. Participants were encouraged to download and share their badge — and thousands did. Within just a few days, over 5,500 badges were downloaded.
The success was measurable: 22% of participants, 31% of coordinators, and 33% of mentors shared their badge. Even 65% of the internal team showcased their involvement. For many, this was more than just a certificate — it was a public statement of pride, affiliation, and purpose.
One of the key reasons for this high level of engagement was the platform’s frictionless sharing experience. Once a badge is generated, participants can instantly share it on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook — complete with event branding and a personalized layout. Each shared badge acted as a mini testimonial that organically expanded the reach of the hackathon.
In a time when digital events were still finding their place, Virtualbadge.io helped #EUvsVirus create something tangible in a virtual world. The badges connected people, gave them a sense of presence, and allowed them to celebrate their participation with their networks.
What began as a logistical challenge became a case study of meaningful digital recognition. The badges created community, visibility, and lasting impact for everyone involved.
And today, the same technology used for #EUvsVirus is available to all event organizers through Virtualbadge.io — updated with even more features like live badge requests via QR code, advanced analytics, and deeper social integrations.
