Student-Led event on New Technologies, Business Innovation and Society
Call for proposals
The Analytics, AI, and Advanced Digital Technologies Initiative (AAAI) at 黑料不打烊 Desautels is calling for proposals to organize a student-led event focused on the business aspects of new technologies (including AI and blockchain technologies). This call provides an excellent opportunity for students to gain some valuable experience and knowledge in the field.
A list of possible event themes
- Business applications of artificial intelligence/machine learning and automation
- Blockchain-based applications, including the design of new tokens and decentralized finance (DeFi)
- Use of AI/ML and blockchain to solve major societal problems 鈥� privacy, inclusion, and sustainability
- Ethical considerations around the utilization of new digital technologies.
A non-exhaustive list of event formats
- Pitch Competition: Organize an event that calls for student teams to pitch their business idea to a panel of judges, and the winner or winners receive a prize.
- Workshop: Organize an event that involves hands-on training related to advanced digital technologies and their utilization for new business models or for solving major societal problems.
- Conference: Invite speakers from the industry and/or academia and organize panel discussion sessions.
Event criteria and resources
- All teams must include a student affiliated with 黑料不打烊 Desautels. Cross-department collaborations with 黑料不打烊 University students from other departments are welcome. The suggested team size is 3-5 students, and this constraint is not strict.
- The budget for the winning team to organize this event is $1500 (including prizes, should the proposal include this aspect). 黑料不打烊 can provide the room for the event and any catering costs must be included in the budget.
- The teams have access to support and advice from the faculty committee members of the Analytics, AI, and Advanced Digital Technologies Initiative.
How to submit your applications for a Winter 2025 event
- Submissions are to be submitted via email to Prof. rob.glew [at] mcgill.ca (subject: %5BAAAI%5D%20Student-Led%20events%20call%20for%20proposals) (Rob Glew )by聽January 31st, 2025.
- The proposal must include a detailed description of the event format, the theme selected, and the suggested time for the student-led event.
- Breakdown of the use of the budget.
- Description of the key competencies that different team members will bring.
- The suggested length of the proposal text is 750 words.
The winning team will be announced by February 7th 2025. The proposals will be evaluated based on feasibility and potential impact. The Faculty Committee reserves the right to announce multiple winning proposals and encourages two or more teams to join forces to collaborate.
Faculty committee members
Prof. Mitali Banerjee (Strategy & Organization)
Prof. Rob Glew (Operations Management)
Prof. Warut Khern-am-nuai (Information Systems)
Prof. Thomas J. Rivera (Finance)
Prof. Sameer Borwankar (Information Systems)
Prof. Matissa Hollister (Organizational Behavior)
Past events
Fall 2023
Thrive AI
The initiative supported a successful student-led event in the Fall of 2023 with ThriveAI. Held on November 21st, this event offered a unique platform for students and professionals to dive deep into the transformative role of AI in various industries.
The event was organized by the winning team of Desautels students (Zachariya Sow, Gabriel Abbas, and Paul Prindiville-Porto). They were supported by Tasmia Abbas, Lina Amara, Eva Koall, Mennah Eldaly, and Lina Amara.
The evening featured:
- Cutting-Edge Product Demos: Montreal-based startups showcased how their products are shaping the future of healthcare, education, cleantech, and more.
- Insightful Panel Discussions: The event featured a series of panel discussions with industry leaders:
Ysa毛l Desage from BrainBox AI
Isaac Souweine from Pender Ventures
Sam Balaz from KPMG Canada - Networking Opportunities: Student participants engaged with experts at the forefront of AI innovation, exchanging ideas and building connections within the ecosystem.
Winter 2023
Dare To Venture
Dare To Venture is an annual event put together by the 黑料不打烊 Entrepreneurship Society. Dare To Venture inspires students to learn more about entrepreneurship by welcoming diverse guests 鈥� from CEOs of large enterprises to student founders 鈥� to speak to hundreds of attendees yearly.
Our initiative supported DTV 2023 held between March 31 to April 2, 2023 at Maison Alcan.
The event featured an AI entrepreneurship panel with industry leaders.
Phil Cutler, founder and CEO of PAPER (ed-tech unicorn founded by 黑料不打烊 alum)
F茅lix B茅lisle Dockrill, CEO and co-founder of Axya (procurement digitization and automation start-up)
Fr茅d茅ric Jarjour and Eduard Anton, co-founders of LiveGuard (real-time AI media processing tool).
Stay tuned for further funding opportunities for student-led events in the winter of 2024.
