“We’re all friends at Penn, in similar programs and classes, and we’ve collaborated in hackathons before,” explains WayWise member Utkarsh Lal, GEng’27. “That prior experience meant we already had strong chemistry, which helped us hit the ground running.”

Now in its third year, the Wharton Hack-AI-thon, presented by Expedia Group, brought together some of Penn’s most ambitious builders to tackle real-world challenges at the intersection of artificial intelligence and business. This year’s competition was no exception, marked by rapid prototyping, late-night debates, and a final round full of energy, precision, and creativity.

This year’s business challenge from Expedia Group tasked teams with creating a tool to enhance the review process both for existing guests leaving reviews on properties and for future guests seeking current, complete information before they travel. Winning team WayWise approached the problem from a systems-level perspective. Rather than building a flashy prototype, they focused on something more ambitious: designing a solution that could realistically operate at scale. The team, comprised of Penn Engineering graduate students stood out among their competitors for their technical rigor, clear product thinking, and ability to execute under pressure.

Read the full article here.

Posted: July 3, 2026

A medium-sized group of smiling professionals in two rows pose in a classroom with a Wharton backdrop.
Wharton 2026 Hack-AI-Thon winning team WayWise with Expedia Group representatives and judges. (Image Credit: Kyle Kearns)
Two professionally-dressed men present in front of a classroom with screens and projected text.
Two members of the winning WayWise team present at the 2026 Hack-AI-thon. (Image Credit: Kyle Kearns)
A row of professionally-dressed team members sits and listens to a presentation in a classroom.
Members of finalist team Heartbridge at the 2026 Hack-AI-thon. (Image Credit: Kyle Kearns)

Related Content

Read More Stories