Innovation Challenge

2025 AIS Software Innovation Challenge Award Winners

On November 7, AIS Student Chapter members from around the world met to attend the virtual AIS 2025 Student Chapter Leadership Conference hosted by AIS. Students learned from industry experts, hosted a leadership workshop, learned more about SCLC 2026 at James Madison University, and earned awards for their competition solutions.This challenge allowed competitors to demonstrate the impact Information Systems can have in improving the world. Teams designed and implemented an innovative IS solution based a their choice of a number of parameters, focusing mostly on the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

First Place and Students’ Choice:

The Innovators, University of Alabama 

Second Place:

Higsfield, Florida International University 

Third Place:

The Signal Three, Auburn University 

Prompt Details

As students and future practitioners of Information Systems (IS), you play a significant part in this mission to serve society. The AIS Student Chapters Technology Innovation Challenge focuses on information systems solutions, innovations and initiatives that help make the world a better, safer place for organizations and society in general.

This challenge will allow you to demonstrate the impact that IS can have in improving the world in which live. If you accept this challenge, your team of 2-4 individuals will design and implement an innovative IS solution fitting one of the parameters below. Your solution may run on any platform, be coded in any language and deployed in any device environment. Projects that implement an IoT solution are particularly welcome.

Eligibility Requirement

This competition is restricted to members of current AIS Student Chapters. 

Topic areas could also focus around the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by a multitude of countries on September 25th 2015, with objectives such as ending poverty, protecting the planet, and ensuring prosperity for all. Each of the 17 goals has specific targets to be achieved over the next 15 years.
Goals include:
  • No poverty
  • Zero hunger
  • Good health and well-being
  • Quality education
  • Gender equality
  • Clean water and sanitation
  • Affordable and clean energy
  • Decent work and economic growth
  • Industry, innovation, and infrastructure
  • Reduced inequalities
  • Sustainable cities and communities
  • Responsible consumption and production
  • Climate action
  • Life below water
  • Life on land
  • Peace, justice, and strong institutions
  • Partnerships for the goals

Successful submissions will propose an IS/IT-centered solution to a problem or opportunity that addresses one of the 17 sustainable development goals. Participants are encouraged to be creative and think out of the box to develop an innovative solution to an identified problem.

For more details about the UN Sustainable Development Goals go to https://sdgs.un.org/goals.

Questions? Contact studentchapters@aisnet.org. 

Rules

  • The project submissions should be the work of the project team. If faculty and/or other individuals have significantly contributed to the submission, please be sure to note their contributions.
  • Alpha / Early development system solutions are completely acceptable.
  • Submissions that are based on pre-beta solutions and/or from pre-existing on-going coursework projects are acceptable as well.
  • The contest materials must be submitted by the due dates.
  • Teams must be members of an AIS Student Chapter.
  • Teams may be comprised of graduate and undergraduate students. However, all teams must have at least one undergraduate team member to qualify.
  • No deliverable can identify the university or school to which the team belongs. The team must refrain from using school colors in the submitted documents. The video should not indicate to which school the team belongs. If school identification is included in any of the submitted documents or video, the team will be eliminated from the competition. 

Submission Instructions

Submit your entry using this official Submission Form by October 15. 

  • Your submission as Word or PDF file that includes the problem statement, solution description, benefits, platform, etc.
  • Link to your video - Upload your video to YouTube.com (make sure that you don’t make your video private so we can access it!)
  • Names and email addresses of the team members with a corresponding author identified
  • To participate, each team must give permission for recorded material to be posted in the AIS eLibrary for discussion after the competition deadline.

Judging Criteria

Guidelines Percentage
Problem Significance
  • Does the team describe a societal problem that can be solved by IS?
  • How well do they make the case for the need for a solution?
    		 20
    Solution Description
    • Does the team fully and clearly describe the proposed solution?
    • Does the solution that they describe have the potential to solve the problem that they have presented?
    		 20
    Innovativeness of Solution
    • Is the solution innovative?
    • How is it different than what has already been done?
      		 20
      Business Aspect of Solution
      • Does the team convey that there is a market demand for the application?
      • Does the team have a solid plan for marketing the application?
      • Is the application sustainable?
      		 20
      Alpha Prototype Demo
      • What is the quality of the demo/video?
      • How well does the team respond to questions?
      		 20
      TOTAL
      		 100

      The mission statement of AIS is as follows:

      “The Association for Information Systems (AIS) serves society through the advancement of knowledge and the promotion of excellence in the practice and study of information systems. AIS is the premier professional association for individuals and organizations who lead the research, teaching, practice, and study of information systems worldwide.”