Weather predictions are preparation tools. When rain is in the forecast, it’s best to bring an umbrella. Individuals should apply the same kind of preparation according to their own emotional weather forecasts. That’s the thinking behind Empact, a new app economics students Chuyi He and Siming Xiang pitched at the Centre for Entrepreneurship’s Hult Prize competition in mid-February.
“We are building an AI-powered emotional weather forecast app to predict mental health risks before they strike,” Chuyi explained. “We focus on three innovations: emotional radar, resiliency missions, and a community defense network.”
Users journal their emotional state or mental wellness by selecting a series of icons to express their moods. Wellness strategies, such as taking exercise, spending time at a club or event, or enjoying a hobby can also be logged.
The team is currently exploring how the app can meet the needs of diverse audiences.
“Our app offers a B2C model with free and premium options for AI-based mental health prediction, and a B2B model with teacher workshops to educate educators on recognizing mental health risks,” Siming said. “Unlike traditional apps that have a 97% abandonment rate, we designed a sustained engagement model through gamification. For example, users can unlock a virtual badge for completing missions, like making a video-call with friends when they are feeling lonely.”
The idea for the app is rooted in research and its operations reference ideas the duo has encountered through both their economics classes and exposure to other disciplines. Chuyi is enrolled in an Economics Major program with Psychology and Statistics Minors. Siming is combining an Economics Major with an Environmental Chemistry Major.
“The main goal of the competition is to create something meaningful for the world, aligning with the United Nations Sustainability Goals,” Siming explained. “We care deeply about people’s mental health problems and know it is important for everyone.”
Destigmatizing the conversation about mental health was also important to the two New College students.
“We find it to be a problem that people think mental health problems are severe diseases,” Chuyi said. “We want to normalize mental health problems as temporary states. It is not a secret shame.”
While the pair did not progress to the next level of the Hult Prize Competition, they both think their business idea has merit, and they are continuing to pursue it by accessing the expertise and opportunities available at the University of Toronto.
“We know there are already some psychology studies on affective forecasting, but their results are limited and not representative,” Chuyi said. “We want to ask more professors and researchers about their work and to help conduct more studies in this field to make the results more representative. This will help us create more accurate emotional predictions for our app.”
For other undergraduate students considering their own business ideas, the pair would advise them to go ahead and start pursuing development.
“Don’t fear failure,” Siming said. “Even if the end result isn’t great, if you believe that you are doing something meaningful and innovative, you should take it further and keep coming back to it as you learn more.”
Return to the Department of Economics website.
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