Innovation Challenge winner embraces AI and the path of entrepreneurship

Joseph Scarfone, a master of sustainability management student, brings calculated risk-taking to cross-faculty collaboration

By Bruno Bustos Alegria

Faculty of Environment

Joseph Scarfone had a career in investment banking before exploring entrepreneurship. Looking to gain an understanding of sustainable finance, reporting mechanisms and artificial intelligence, he joined the Faculty of Environment to pursue a master of sustainability management. Now, in a new career chapter, he participated in the Innovation Challenge: Imagining the Future of Finance run by Velocity. During the two-week-long challenge, Velocity partners BMO, Rogers, and Unity hosted workshops to prepare students for the finals.

“Even if you didn’t necessarily know what virtual reality (VR) was, what the future of finance is, or how personal banking works, there was a chance to learn,” he said.

To create a solution, Scarfone and his team, Fintopia, brainstormed to narrow down ideas by considering the challenge's parameters. They created a VR game that immerses the user in a fun and informative learning experience to educate and promote healthy financial habits like budgeting, saving, and investing.

Read the full article from Waterloo News to learn more.