U of G Students Shine at GDSC Hacks 2025 AI Hackathon

From May 2 to 4, 2025 the University of Guelph hosted GDSC Hacks 2025: Build with AI, a student-led hackathon that brought together aspiring developers, designers, and innovators to tackle real-world problems using artificial intelligence. Organized by the Google Developer Student Club (GDSC) at U of G, the event welcomed participants from across Ontario for a weekend of collaboration, creativity and cutting-edge tech.

Over the course of 36 hours, teams developed AI-powered solutions ranging from accessibility tools to data-driven advisors. The event concluded with a showcase of projects judged by industry professionals and faculty members.

Hackathon Winners

1st Place – Assist
An AI assistant that lives on your phone, capable of making calls, delivering daily news, stock recaps, and more.
Team: Jaskaran Shergill (University of Guelph)

2nd Place – MTG Advisor
Analyzes insider trades by U.S. senators using AI.
Team: Michael Giovanninim (Wilfrid Laurier), Shade Funston, Lucas Scott (University of Guelph)

3rd Place – SpeakEasy
Translates spoken language into 2D ASL animations and vice versa using computer vision and TTS.
Team: Jashanjot Panjrath, Mehar Singh, Ishnoor Kaur (University of Guelph)

Special Awards

Best UI – GPYOU
A personalized recommendation engine that simplifies decision-making through a guided Q&A interface.
Team: Zain Ahmad, Ahmed Al-Ttaee, Musab Saqib, Zaryan Syed (University of Guelph)

Best Use of Gemini – Demeter
A two-part system combining a daylight exposure sensor and an AI-powered web app to track and visualize sunlight data.
Team: Hamid Cassamali, Ashmit Sharma, Ronak Martis, Shaheer Khan (University of Guelph)

Best Use of MongoDB – Paralegal
A conversational AI tool using retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to help users find municipal bylaws with source citations.
Team: Oliver Simm, Marcel Aboumatar, Cole Westerveld, Wyatt Evans (University of Guelph)

Best Use of Tech Domain – Evil Posture Corrector
A computer vision-based system that monitors posture in real time and provides ergonomic feedback via a web interface.
Team: Evan Long, Caden Anton, Alex Busch (University of Guelph)

Organizers and Volunteers

The event was led by Jacob Good, with directors Hasan Al-Khazraji, Arzow Maksum, and Abdullah Cheema. The organizing team also included Timothy Khan, Josh Choong, Himanshu Seervi, Emily Chang, and Daniela Ramirez. Event photography was provided by Andy Huang.

A dedicated group of volunteers helped ensure the event’s success:

• Kemal Kerek
• Jingke Liang
• Brooke Stephanols
• Peter Bertone
• Hyunjin Kim
• Anthony Jerome Guilatco
• Reese Dominguez
• Genevieve Chin

Photos: GDSC Hacks 2025 Photo Gallery
Project Gallery: Devpost Showcase