Aug 7, 2023
Women’s Amutot Initiative Sponsors Hackathon Competition
The Jerusalem College of Technology’s (JCT) women’s hackathon, sponsored in part by Federation’s Women’s Amutot Initiative, was a noted success, garnering considerable attention in Jewish media.
“Women’s Hackathon Produces Road Safety, Drone Detection Solutions,” cited the Jewish Press, while the Jewish News Syndicate reported, “AI Takes Center Stage” at the sixth annual Hack.Her.It., which took place in June. This was the first year that the two-day event, which focused on tackling technological challenges, utilized both classic and generative artificial intelligence (AI).
“People are often initially scared of generative artificial intelligence, but it has quickly become an inseparable part of the technology and industry,” said Orlee Guttman, Co-Founder of the Schreiber LevTech Entrepreneurship Center where the hackathon was held. “Rather than looking at it as a threat,” she added, “we see it as having tremendous potential, similar to the introduction of computers to math and science.”
Hackathon participants were Orthodox women pursuing degrees in software engineering, computer science, business administration and management, and many of the 150 students were young mothers who brought their babies to the competition. Avital Horowitz, a computer science student at JCT, said having her six-month-old daughter with her while her team developed a system for connecting buyers and sellers using a Telegram bot was calming. “Despite the difficulties, she helped me stay focused,” remarked Horowitz, adding, “I was happy to have her on stage with me when we received the award for the best presentation in the competition.”
Other sponsors of the hackathon were Cross River Bank, Fullstack Systems Ltd and the Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta. The Women’s Amutot Initiative allocates funds from the Annual Greater Miami Jewish Federation/UJA Campaign to organizations in Israel that empower women to improve Israeli society through social, economic, religious and political equality. Click here to learn more.
