Phase 01 · Workshop & Internal Pilot Completed
Applied AI for
Daily Life.
An exclusive technical session and internal competition hosted for the SUST Industrial & Production Engineering (2021–22) cohort, organized in partnership with Z.ai. Led by Rudra Sarker, Z.ai Ambassador for Bangladesh.
01 Program Overview
A hands-on AI session, built for IPE.
Sponsored and organized in collaboration with Z.ai, this initiative was specifically designed for students of the Industrial and Production Engineering (IPE) department at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST), Session 2021–22.
The program kicked off with an intensive, hands-on technical session conducted by the ambassador for his batchmates. We explored practical, low-compute methodologies for integrating artificial intelligence into everyday workflows — focusing heavily on localization and hardware constraints.
Following the instructional session, we seamlessly transitioned into an internal competition themed "AI for Daily Life". Batchmates were challenged to architect and prototype highly functional AI tools designed to solve immediate, daily-life problems within our local ecosystem.
Theme: AI for Daily Life
- Focus on Utility: Prototypes were strictly required to address mundane but critical daily tasks — ranging from localized academic scheduling to automated resource management.
- Hardware Constraints: All solutions had to be executable on standard student laptops, proving that high-impact AI does not inherently require expensive cloud GPU access.
- Collaborative Engineering: By running this exclusively within the IPE 2021–22 cohort, we fostered a highly competitive yet collaborative engineering environment.
- Z.ai Integration: Every team's prototype had to consume at least one Z.ai GLM model endpoint — anchoring the cohort to a frontier platform.
02 Automated Evaluation Rubric
Algorithmically computed, objectively scored.
To ensure absolute objectivity and rapid feedback, all engineering prototypes were evaluated using a custom-built, auto-calculated scoring algorithm across four strict dimensions.
Practical Viability
Calculated based on the solution's resource footprint. Does it run efficiently on a standard device without heavy reliance on external API calls?
Localized Impact
Scored on relevance to the "Daily Life" theme. How effectively does this solve a hyper-local problem faced by students in Bangladesh?
Execution & Architecture
Algorithmic evaluation of code cleanliness, latency optimization, and the intelligent implementation of lightweight local models.
Innovation Index
A metric evaluating the uniqueness of the approach — rewarding teams that bypassed conventional high-compute solutions for clever, scrappy engineering.
03 Phase Roadmap
From cohort session to national hackathon.
This SUST IPE 2021–22 session was Phase 01 of a three-phase ambassador roadmap. Phase 03 scales it to a national-level Z.ai hackathon for all of Bangladesh.
SUST IPE Workshop + Internal Pilot
1-hour hands-on Z.ai session + "AI for Daily Life" internal competition for the IPE 2021–22 cohort. The seed event for everything that follows.
University-wide expansion
Open the format to all SUST departments. Onboard co-organizers, formalize starter kits, and lock the rubric for a multi-department event.
National Z.ai Hackathon · Bangladesh
Scale to a multi-university, multi-track national event, powered by Z.ai. Live site at rudra496.github.io/zai.
The national hackathon is now live.
The SUST IPE 2021–22 session proved the format works. Phase 03 takes it nationwide — 5 tracks, multi-university, free for all Bangladeshi students, in September 2026.