DTCC hosts its first AI-Powered hackathon, Innovate.DTCC, in February, which will be the first in a series of initiatives that leverage AI and machine learning technologies to address critical challenges facing the financial services industry.
From February 3-7, industry experts, clients, students and thought leaders will come together virtually to collaborate and develop innovative solutions that can potentially enhance the efficiency, transparency and overall performance of the business.
Johnna Powell, DTCC Managing Director & Head of Technology, Research and Innovation, explains the benefits of hosting an event like Innovate.DTCC, its alignment to the DTCC AI Accelerator and why participating will have a positive impact on our clients.
DC: Johnna, how did the idea of the hackathon come about and what are the benefits of hosting one?
JP: First and foremost, DTCC’s vision is to lead the advancement of global financial markets as the most influential, strategic and tech-focused partner. Our North Star is to foster collaborative, innovative environments to solve key industry problems, and this hackathon is aligned to that vision. The hackathon’s overall goal is to progress the industry and deliver open-source solutions that will address key pain points that are common to most participants in the capital markets industry, such as:
- Predictive Modeling & Forecasting
- Optimization and Automation
- Anomaly Detection
- Risk Mitigation
- Self-Service Investigation
The benefits of hosting an industry-wide, collaborative hackathon is that we’ll be able to collaborate with key industry leaders who are working on some of the toughest problems, benefit from their broad and deep expertise, and ultimately give back to the industry by funding the ongoing open-source development of the winning initiatives through FINOS.
The upcoming hackathon will draw together industry experts, thought leaders, clients and students, to collaborate over the course of a week to develop innovative solutions to industry challenges, strengthen relationships and open up DTCC and our participants to new perspectives and ideas.
This event will not only allow us to showcase how we are leveraging AI to further elevate the organization but also strengthen our position as a strategic partner to our clients and the industry.
DC: How much planning goes into an event link this?
JP: A lot! So much work goes into executing a hackathon across many functions, including IT, Legal, Compliance, Marketing and Communications and Client Relations. The event also involves collaborating with partners like Broadridge, FINOS and AWS.
DC: How does participating benefit our clients and collaborators?
JP: Hackathon participants benefit in several ways – involvement in events like this exposes everyone to fresh perspectives and new approaches to industry challenges, as well as boosting relationships with peers across financial services. Participating teams will work on one of four predetermined use cases. Winning teams will benefit from rewards including opportunities to collaborate on pilot projects, showcase at industry events, pursue collaborative whitepapers, and access grants to fund ongoing Open-Source development.
DC: The countdown is on! What are you most excited about?
JP: This event already has great momentum and while a lot goes into the planning, we are excited to launch! We have already assembled more than 20 strong teams across the industry, and I’m intrigued to see how challenges are approached by participants in other firms with varying perspectives. Hackathons always inspire new solutions and find new ways to break through barriers, so it will be interesting to see what comes of this one.
DC: How can someone get involved?
JP: If you are interested in participating, please reach out to our DTCC AI Hackathon team, or register on our Innovate.DTCC page. Registration is open until Friday, January 17. This is an exciting event with so much to offer so I encourage any DTCC Connection reader who might be interested in taking part to do just that!