How to participate in UF’s AI Days, Oct. 24-29
Students, faculty and staff are invited to participate in the University of Florida’s fourth annual AI Days from Oct. 24 to 29. AI Days, sponsored by the AI^2 Center, are one component of UF’s larger push to engage the entire campus around artificial intelligence and its potential and will include a number of immersive events. The events are free and open to the UF community.
According to former AI Days competition winner and biomedical engineering graduate Ashni Zaverchand, the event offers students ways to learn professionalism, public speaking and confidence, along with more technical skills. She encourages students from all disciplines to participate.
“AI Days showed me that putting yourself out there opens doors you don’t expect,” said Zaverchand. “Even if you don’t win, you gain exposure, connections and skills that stick with you.”
Gator Tank
Hosted by the Warrington College of Business’ Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center, the pitch competition, called Gator Tank, is designed to help students launch and grow businesses that leverage AI.
The top four competitors – based on innovativeness of the business idea and quality of the pitch – will compete for the chance to win up to $5,000 in Luby Microgrants, funded by the Joan & Chester Luby Charitable Trust. The Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center will offer mentoring and business resources along the way.
The finalists will present their final 15-minute pitches publicly on Oct. 27.
Former winner Alexander Simes felt the contest encouraged creativity and entrepreneurship. Simes worked with Zaverchand to create and pitch Patent-It, a platform to make the patent process more streamlined and accessible. Through the contest, the team was able to connect with experts in tech and law to simplify the intimidating process of filing a patent.
“The biggest value from the competition was being rewarded for innovation,” said Simes. “We also got a lot of good publicity from it, which opened a lot of doors.”
Gator Hack
The Gator Hack Competition is a 48-hour contest that provides an opportunity for all students to develop a solution with emphasis on AI in a multidisciplinary approach. In order to enter, teams must represent at least two different majors or departments. Registration for this event is open.
Starting on Oct. 24 at 5 p.m. in Newell Hall, teams of students will work to create an AI demo project that highlights the disciplines of team members. Students will be able to submit under five categories – finance, healthcare, sustainability, arts and education. The hackathon ends on Oct. 26 and prizes and recognition will follow.
Teams will compete for prizes based on creativity, functionality, interdisciplinary collaboration and presentation quality.
Gator Create
Gator Create celebrates the intersection of creativity and technology through generative art, which uses algorithms and computational processes to produce innovative and dynamic artworks. Registration is open until Oct. 15.
Students will compete across eight different categories, including People’s Choice. The People’s Choice winner will be voted on by the UF community and announced on Oct. 27.
The competition welcomes art from all categories, including visual art, literature and music. There is also a category for experimental and immersive work. This competition encourages students to blend creativity with technical skill.
Former winner Valentina Pestana encourages students to approach the contest creatively, by considering blending generative AI with human-produced art. Pestana’s 2024 project utilized AI to transform a human dancer into a robot, depicting the struggle between human and machine.
“In my view, the intersection of generative AI and human creativity is where the most powerful artistic expression emerges,” Pestana said .
Poster presentations
To highlight the incredibly diverse research using AI across campus, AI Days is featuring a poster presentation. All undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, staff, and faculty can present a poster. Presentations from any and all disciplines will be showcased, including posters on the pedagogy of AI in your discipline.
College events day
On Oct. 24, participating colleges and units will present about opportunities in AI, showcasing their positions at the forefront of innovation including: College of Education, College of Health and Human Performance and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. It will also feature the Data & Artificial Intelligence Symposium (DAISY) Workshop, which focuses on the intersection of academia and industry. This workshop will feature representatives from UF colleges and corporate leaders. Check the AI Days site for a full list of college-specific AI events.