Demonstrating a strong commitment to innovation, a team of talented undergraduate students from the Departments of Electrical & Electronic and Mechatronics Engineering programmes excelled at the Data Science Hackathon, hosted by Stellenbosch University’s School for Data Science and Computational Thinking. This annual event brought together over 180 participants from diverse fields, creating a dynamic environment to address real-world challenges through innovative solutions.
The engineering students showcased outstanding technical skills and teamwork, contributing to the hackathon’s theme, “Patch Perfect: Using AI to Fix Roads,” which focused on using AI-driven methods to address pressing infrastructure needs.
Read the article by the School for Data Science and Computational Thinking below:
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The recently concluded hackathon organised by Stellenbosch University’s (SU) School for Data Science and Computational Thinking was extraordinary, marking a milestone in the university’s commitment to advancing innovation, diversity, and community engagement. Over ten days, the hackathon brought together a vibrant mix of students from various departments, cutting across faculties, academics, and industry professionals who collaborated to solve a real-world challenge, creating an environment buzzing with creativity and ingenuity.
A showcase of diversity and talent
One of the most remarkable aspects of this hackathon was the diversity of our participants. The event attracted a wide range of talents from different academic disciplines, cultural backgrounds, and levels of experience. The background and level of participants spanned disciplines such as Bioinformatics, Computer Science, Data Science and Engineering, Economics, Electrical Engineering, Information Science, Physics, and Mathematics.
This year’s event had over 60 registered teams and 180 participants, showing significant growth and popularity compared with the 2023 edition, which had 26 registered teams and 80 participants. This indicates the growing popularity of both the hackathon and students’ desire to solve real-world problems.
The backbone of success: our sponsors and industry partners
The hackathon’s success wouldn’t have been possible without the unwavering support of our generous sponsors and industry partners. We thank Standard Bank, Motus, and Differential Capital, whose generous contributions and active involvement made this event a reality.
These organisations did not just provide financial support; they brought invaluable expertise and mentorship, helping our participants refine their ideas and think critically about the real-world application. Their presence at the hackathon underscored the importance of academia-industry partnerships in nurturing the next generation of innovators and leaders. This underscores the importance placed by the School on industry partnerships.
Innovative solutions with real-world impact
The essence of the hackathon is to solve grand challenges peculiar to the country and the continent in general. South Africa has many roads with an undeniable number of potholes; this year’s hackathon challenge was to use artificial intelligence (AI) to offer efficient and data-driven solutions. Hence, the theme was “Patch Perfect: Using AI to Fix Roads”. Participants were required to predict the number of cement bags needed to fill a pothole via image datasets, considering the varying characteristics of potholes. This problem is faced by municipalities in resource planning for fixing potholes. The creativity, innovation, and complexities of the solutions were top-notch and highly competitive, underscoring the quality of programmes and student talent found at this university.
A community united by innovation
The hackathon was more than just a competition – it celebrated the university community’s shared passion for innovation. It provided a platform for students to push their boundaries, learn from each other, and connect with industry leaders. The evening of the grand finale of the hackathon fostered a sense of camaraderie and collective achievement, reminding us of the incredible potential within our community when we come together with a common goal.
The first prize was won by Jordan Welsh, Daniel Van Nimwegen, Cameron Painting, and William Morley (Team Neural Navigator), a team of BEng Electrical and Electronic, BEng Mechatronics, and MSc Applied Mathematics students; Christiaan Hildebrand and AD Kotze (Team Pandas) – BDatSci students won the second prize; and Team ComSigh – Dirk Hoffmann, Franco Uys, Shriyan Singh, Tonitz Gunther, Stephan Schoonbee all BDataSc in computer science students went home with the third prize. The all-women’s prize was won by the Byte Bellas – Emma Rautenbach, Ilanri Van Rossum, Inge Blignaut, and Lucia Pauw, all studyingBDataSc degree.
Looking forward
As we reflect on the success of the 2024 Data School Hackathon, we do so with a profound sense of pride in our university community. The event highlighted SU’s incredible talent and diversity and reinforced the University’s commitment to supporting innovation and collaboration across disciplines.
SU looks forward to seeing the continued growth and impact of the projects born out of this hackathon. The Standard Bank Lead, Dr Sunday Oladejo, added: “we are grateful to all participants, sponsors, industry partners, and organizers for making this event a resounding success. Together, we have laid the foundation for a brighter, more innovative future in the country.”
