Successful Completion of the 4th ‘UNIST-KAIST-POSTECH AI & Data Science Competition’

The Department of Industrial Engineering at UNIST, with the generous support of KB Securities Co. Ltd., Linq Inc., and Fast Campus Inc., successfully concluded the ‘4th UNIST-KAIST-POSTECH AI & Data Science Competition‘ in January 2025.

The competition aims to identify and nurture future leaders in the financial AI field by providing participants with hands-on experience in data science, solving real-world problems, and applying cutting-edge AI technologies.

This year’s theme, Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), focused on developing accurate Large Language Model (LLM) technology, a leading innovation in Generative AI. The participants demonstrated their ability to bridge theoretical knowledge with practical application, showcasing the potential of AI technologies in real-world scenarios.

The final round of the ‘4th UNIST-KAIST-POSTECH AI & Data Science Competition’ featured real-world problem-solving cases, which saw 230 preliminary participants narrowed down to 40 teams for the final competition. l Image Credit: Department of Industrial Engineering, UNIST

The final round featured real-world problem-solving cases, which saw 230 preliminary participants narrowed down to 40 teams for the final competition. Team November from KAIST emerged as the Grand Prize winner, while UNIST took home six awards, including Gold, Silver, and Participation prizes. As a testament to the competition’s success, outstanding teams received preferential recruitment discounts for the candidates for graduation.

The competition offered participants a unique opportunity to tackle practical problems in financial AI, with KB Securities Co. Ltd., setting the theme, Linq Inc. providing a financial-specific RAG dataset, and Fast Campus offering educational materials to help teams acquire the latest AI technologies.

“We believe this competition provided an invaluable experience for students to practice problem-solving skills in a real-world setting,” said Professor Yongjae Lee from the Department of Industrial Engineering at UNIST. Department Head Sungil Kim of Industrial Engineering added, “We expect students to hone their data science capabilities through practical experience and become a new generation of talented individuals in the financial AI field.”

The collaboration between UNIST, KAIST, and POSTECH, as well as the significant support from KB Securities, made this competition a resounding success. The business agreement signed last year served as a key foundation for the competition.

The AI & Data Science Competition has evolved from a simple competition into a comprehensive AI and data science education platform. The fifth installment is scheduled to take place in the second half of the year, under the sponsorship of the Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering (ISE) at KAIST.