Big Four firm KPMG announced that a student team representing the Indian Institute of Technology has won the 17th annual global Ideation Challenge, held virtually from Aug. 24-25.
The international competition gathers teams of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and business students to help solve real-world business problems with AI and emerging technology-driven solutions.
The competition featured more than 8,000 student applicants across 19 countries. Seventeen teams were ultimately chosen to advance to the event's final phase. The two-day competition saw students work in teams mentored by KPMG professionals to develop an emerging tech solution that delivers increased value to businesses and society.
The top three finalist teams were from the Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines) in Dhanbad, India; Zhejiang University in China; and the University of Florida in the U.S. The winning team from the IIT will receive $50,000 in seed funding to bring their ideas closer to reality.
Team NAVACHARITAM (Technology Replaces Repetitiveness) from the Indian Institute of Technology was deemed the winner for developing a solution bringing disruptive innovation to the mining industry. Winning team members (pictured) include Sanchit Kumar, Varnika Kumari, Parth Hetamsaria and Srajan Gupta.
“The panel of judges selected the student team from the Indian Institute of Technology because they addressed a problem with global relevance — safety and sustainability in the mining industry — and developed a solution that was commercially and technically viable,” said Phil Thornley, a partner with KPMG Australia and a lead practitioner with KPMG’s Global Lighthouse Center of Excellence for Data, AI and Emerging Technologies, in a statement. “This technology shows great promise; it has the potential to offer significant safety, environmental and cost benefits."
“The work KPMG member firms do — and the way KPMG professionals work — is changing drastically. AI, automation and advanced analytics increasingly drive our audit, tax and advisory services,” said Nhlamu Dlomu, global head of people for KPMG International, in a statement. “That’s why this year KPMG brought STEM and business students together into the same competition. We believe that greater diversity in skill sets leads to more innovative and creative solutions.”
For more on the Ideation Challenge, head to KPMG's
