BMCC Hosts First Annual Artificial Intelligence (AI) Innovation Challenge

Around 65 Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) students from across various academic majors filled the main floor of the College gymnasium at 199 Chambers Street on May 4, for the first annual Artificial Intelligence (AI) Innovation Challenge for Social Good event.

The event was organized and sponsored by the Tech Equity Project led by Computer Science professor Dr. Mohammad Azhar and part of the CUNY Tech Equity Initiative.

Most of the student participants arrived by 9 a.m., broke into small groups, then gathered around one of the many tables that filled the BMCC gymnasium. There, they worked together on their laptops to solve problems affecting social good by utilizing AI technology.

Social good topics included zero hunger, environmental sustainability, diversity, equity and inclusion, accessible education, health and wellness, housing, new student community, diversity in STEM, and misinformation and disinformation.

More specifically, the teams spent the day formulating ideas and applying AI to team projects which include writing programming code, designing websites, and creating PowerPoint presentations.

Fifteen industry professionals from companies such as Google and JP Morgan Chase stayed throughout the day to offer guidance and critiques and then a late-night awards ceremony was presented recognizing the student’s work.

“This is the first time we’re having them engage with this kind of collaborative experiential learning activity using AI,” said Professor Azhar earlier that Saturday in the gym. “Hopefully, at the end of the day, we’ll have solutions that we hadn’t thought of.”

Dr. Azhar explained that in years past, large-scale tech innovation events such as this one, happened only once every academic year. But, AI is such a quick-evolving technology, he felt it was important to make this event come to fruition as soon as possible.

The AI Innovation Challenge is taking place as Professor Azhar, along with BMCC CIS Professors Ching Song (Don) Wei, Hao Tang and Yan Chen—are developing BMCC’s new AI Associate degree program as well as what will be CUNY’s first certificate program.

Innovation Challenge participants build skills through teamwork

The benefits of participating in large-scale tech innovation challenges such as this one cannot be overstated, says Professor Azhar. He says the students gain invaluable professional skills by working closely in a team. AI Innovation Challenge creates a learning opportunity for students regardless of their majors to learn and how to apply AI.

“All of the skills we’re talking about, how to become better problem solvers, how to work with others in a team setting, how to communicate their solutions—employers in the industry want job candidates to have those skills,” said Professor Azhar.

He adds that innovation challenge events offer students the opportunity to make new friends and lasting professional connections. Professor Azhar points out that former students who have participated in tech-related innovation challenges have gone on to well-paid jobs, some in high profile companies. such as Google or BNY Mellon.

Students share their experience 

Computer Science major Anthony Chimbay says events such as the AI Innovation Challenge, which is open to all academic majors, provides opportunities to explore a variety of technologies.

“Exploration opens innovation,” said Chimbay, who was part of a team at the Fall 2023 innovation challenge that won an award for its project. “Our project was in the data science section, and it focused on how we can help the CUNY system increase its overall retention rate.”

He explains that his team applied AI in their project which is designed to help academic advisors develop more proactive ways to help their students.

“I didn’t expect to have all the opportunities I’ve had here at BMCC,” said Chimbay, who noted he’s had internships with Reimagining My Community and also conducted research on assistive technology for children with autism under Professor Azhar.

Computer Science major Eslem Sena Varank says the AI Innovation Challenge provides the chance to connect STEM and non-STEM students together.

“When you’re looking to get a job, it’s not just people from your work specialty you’re competing with or working with,” said Varank. “Innovation challenge events like this, you develop projects in more realistic settings, where we are focused on solving issues that BMCC community members face.”

Varank a winner at the  Fall 2023 STEM Innovation Challenge , is also one of nine students who are part of the BMCC AI Tech Innovation Hub internship led by Dr. Azhar.  In this project, the student interns are developing a website and app applying AI for BMCC Social Good that helps students understand the options around an incomplete INC grade.

“Before majoring in Computer Science, I was planning on majoring in Art,” she says, “but then I learned computer science has areas that touch art too, for example, one can create forms of art through AI.”

Read about the winning projects.  AI track winners here.  AI and Data Science track winners here.