Penn's Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative hosted its second annual Wharton-AI-Hackathon this past week.
The event, which took place from March 21 to March 28, aimed to bring “together students of all skill levels to explore and innovate with artificial intelligence.” Regardless of their abilities, students participated in the same activities, developing “practical solutions, [learning] from experts, and [collaborating] in teams supported by workshops and mentors.”
This year's hackathon was titled “Build Your AI for Education Tool & Solve the Prompt Hacking Challenge" and invited competitors to combine “innovation, technical skill, and a dash of creativity.” The Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative reviewed submissions and selected finalists, who then presented their projects to a panel of judges.
"From AI novices to seasoned tech enthusiasts, participants developed practical solutions, learned from experts, and collaborated in teams supported by workshops and mentors," the Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative website read in an announcement.
The judges included several Wharton alumni: 1981 Wharton graduate and former partner at KPMG Brian Hughes, 1999 Wharton graduate and president and co-founder of GEP Worldwide Neha Shah, and 1999 Wharton graduate and Glymr CEO Jeff Greenhouse.
Geoffrey Klein, the CEO of ‘nine dots’ and a current Wharton lecturer, served as a judge as well.
The judges selected three winning teams in the AI for Education Challenge 2025. The winning team — Team M & M’s — included Engineering sophomore Mallika Kulkarni, Wharton sophomore Shriya Sane, and Engineering sophomore Monisha Krothapalli, all of whom received an invitation to present at a Wharton board meeting.
The second place winner, Team Trap, included students Armaan Ahmed, Trini Feng, Raven Tang, and Penelope Larkin. The team received recognition on the Wharton AI & Analytics initiative website, alongside third place winner, Team Pandas, which consisted of Nathan Chen, Paul Loh, and Darren Chen.
All three winning teams additionally received Apple technology products.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
Donate
