The Databricks AI Social Impact (DAISI) Challenge is a national student competition for Singapore's Institutes of Higher Learning. Teams tackle real societal problems using Singapore's national open data, build solutions on the free Databricks platform, receive mentorship from Databricks engineers, and pitch their work to Databricks APJ leadership.
Tracks and Problem Statements The challenge features nine problem statements across three tracks, all grounded in open government datasets from data.gov.sg, SingStat, and various agencies. There is no login or cost required to access these resources. Teams select one problem to solve end-to-end, covering ingestion, data engineering, machine learning, and a live dashboard demo.
Participation and Requirements Teams consist of 1 to 4 students from Singapore Institutes of Higher Learning. Participants must build a working data and AI solution on the Databricks Free Edition that addresses one of the nine problem statements. The solution must utilize Singapore national open data (e.g., Data.gov.sg, SingStat, LTA DataMall, NEA, HDB, URA).
Judges look for a real, runnable pipeline rather than just slides. A strong submission typically demonstrates: * Data Engineering: Ingestion and transformation of at least one public dataset into a clean, governed table using Lakeflow, Delta, or Unity Catalog. * Analytics or AI: A model, forecast, risk score, agent, or natural-language layer producing genuine insights via MLflow, Foundation Model APIs, or Genie. * Usable Output: A dashboard, app, or interface usable by non-technical stakeholders like social workers or policy officers. * Social Impact: A clear explanation of who benefits and how.
Prizes and Benefits Participants compete for a prize pool worth up to US$24,500, with credits, training, and certifications awarded to the top three teams. Additionally, the winning team presents at the launch of the new Databricks Singapore office. The event offers a unique opportunity to work on meaningful issues such as ageing, climate resilience, housing, mobility, and community development while learning a platform used by thousands of companies worldwide at no cost.
Full briefs, datasets, and expected demo outputs are available in the Participant Guide.