MeetingPlace

Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. We’re compiling real UofT events scattered across 12+ websites AND club's Instagram's, listing them all in one place to save you time and keep you in the loop!

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Inspiration Every UofT student knows the struggle of finding events – scattered across websites, hidden in club Instagram posts, or buried in emails. We wanted to solve this by creating a centralized hub where students can easily discover and engage with all the amazing opportunities on campus. MeetingPlace was inspired by our desire to save time, foster connections, and make event discovery seamless for everyone.

What it does MeetingPlace aggregates events from over a dozen UofT websites and club Instagram pages, presenting them in one streamlined platform. THEY ARE ALL CLICKABLE!!! THEY LINK YOU TO THE EVENTS. Furthermore, with smart search, personalized recommendations, and category-based navigation, students can effortlessly explore sports, academic, arts, and coding events – all updated in real-time.

How we built it We used AWS Elastic Beanstalk for scalable deployment, AWS RDS for a high-performance database, and AWS Rekognition to analyze Instagram posts and extract event details. The backend was built with Flask, while the frontend uses React for a responsive, intuitive interface. Together, these technologies create a seamless event discovery experience.

Challenges we ran into Data aggregation hurdles: Extracting event information from Instagram posts required fine-tuning AWS Rekognition to handle diverse flyer designs and text placements. Scalability: Ensuring our system could scale smoothly for thousands of users pushed us to optimize infrastructure with Elastic Beanstalk. User experience: Designing an interface that’s both functional and visually appealing required iterative testing and feedback.

Accomplishments that we're proud of: Building a fully functional prototype within a limited timeframe. Successfully automating Instagram post analysis with AI to extract event details. Creating a sleek, user-friendly UI that makes event discovery enjoyable. Seamlessly integrating AWS services to power our platform. What we learned: The power of AWS for building scalable, robust applications. How to leverage AI tools like Rekognition for real-world applications. The importance of user-centric design in creating an impactful product. Effective teamwork and problem-solving under tight deadlines. What's next for MeetingPlace: Constant Updates from Instagram: currenlty it is slow but works, we need to make it live, which takes more optimizing and resources. Enhanced recommendations: Using AI to provide even smarter, more personalized event suggestions. Event submission portal: Allowing clubs and departments to directly upload events to the platform. Mobile app development: Expanding accessibility with native apps for iOS and Android. Community features: Adding user profiles, event discussions, and RSVP tracking to foster deeper engagement.

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