President Jonathan J. Sanford, Ph.D. | University of Dallas website

Over the coming weeks, students from Constantin College and the Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business at the University of Dallas will prepare to participate in a hackathon. This event, recognized as the first artificial intelligence (AI) hackathon in Dallas/Fort Worth, is scheduled for November 18 in McKinney.

The hackathon is sponsored by Intelligage, a startup based in McKinney. In collaboration with McKinney Economic Development Corporation and venture capital firm Plug and Play, Intelligage aims to establish the Dallas/Fort Worth area as a hub for AI innovation in Texas.

“The next generation of AI practitioners is in the universities, and we are excited to host forward-thinking schools such as the University of Dallas and pave the way to mutual success,” said Bryan Plaster, co-founder and CEO of Intelligage.

Faculty and students from other institutions including Collin College, the University of Texas at Dallas, and the University of North Texas will also attend and compete.

Renita Murimi, PhD, associate professor of cybersecurity at UDallas, has been organizing teams for this event. “As of now, I see three teams of UDallas students: two teams of undergraduate students in the computer science program and one team of master’s students in the cybersecurity program,” Murimi stated. “The students have some interesting ideas about what their AI agents would do, and they are working on refining their ideas. They are learning how to code AI agents for specific applications.”

Before attending the event, each team will submit a three-minute video showcasing their AI agent's capabilities. The top-performing teams will be highlighted during the November competition.

This participation follows an announcement by UDallas's College of Business regarding its new Master of Science degree in data science and artificial intelligence (DSAI). Applications for this program are currently open with classes set to begin in fall 2025.

The Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business has been a leader in graduate business education for over five decades. Located in Irving, Texas, it was first to offer an AACSB-accredited Doctorate in Business Administration within Texas. It provides flexible educational programs designed for early to mid-career professionals under faculty who are both scholars and seasoned business leaders.

UDallas positions itself as a leading Catholic liberal arts university known for its rigorous curriculum across various disciplines including business and humanities. With campuses located both domestically in Texas and internationally in Italy, it emphasizes comprehensive intellectual development alongside social and spiritual growth.