Datarails AI in Finance Challenge
Solve a real finance problem with AI. Win a trip to Vegas.
Show us the AI workflow you’d actually use in your job. The winner heads to Las Vegas to watch the Microsoft Excel World Championship live.
- Registration opens July 20, 2026
- Submissions close August 18, 2026
- Winner announced September 2, 2026
What you're playing for
MEWC finals, Las Vegas
A trip for the winner and one guest to attend the Microsoft Excel World Championship finals in person (Dec 1–2, 2026, Luxor Hotel), organized by the Financial Modeling World Cup. Approximate retail value: $2,000.
$500 gift card
A $500 USD gift card awarded to the runner-up, selected by our panel of judges. Redeemable at a range of retailers available in your country of choice.
Exact trip details (flights, hotel nights, approximate retail value) confirmed in the full Terms and Conditions.
The winner and runner-up present their builds live on our Series 3 FinanceOS AI webinar, September 30, 2026.
Five steps, one submission
Registration opens July 20
This is a solo challenge: one entrant, one submission. All the resources and inspiration you need to get started are accessible below.
Build your workflow (July 20 – August 18)
Download our 3-year sample dataset and build your AI workflow against it. We’re looking for solutions such as an app, an agent, a workflow, or a simulator, whatever format brings your idea to life.
Submit your workflow by August 18, 2026
Share a written document and an optional video showcasing what you built, the problem it solves, and the potential impact it has for finance teams (a rough estimate is fine).
Judging panel review (August 18 – August 25)
A panel reviews every submission for need, power, and creativity, and shortlists finalists. Both the winner and the runner-up will be notified privately on the 26th and have up to 5 days to respond.
Winner announced September 2, 2026
Winner and runner-up will be announced on our 3rd FinanceOS AI webinar series on September 2, and both the winner and runner-up will present their workflow live on our final session on September 30, 2026.
Work that turns heads faster than a broken VLOOKUP
Need
Does it address a real finance need? If it solves a genuine problem, not a hypothetical one, it’s on the right track.
Power
How much horsepower does it bring? The strongest entries do real heavy lifting: meaningful time saved, errors caught, or scale a person couldn’t match alone.
Creativity
Does it use AI in a genuinely clever way? The best entries make you wonder why finance didn’t already work like this.
Prerequisites
Every submission is built on this dataset
Every submission is built on the same sample dataset: three years of monthly data for Northwind Financial, covering revenue by region and product, expenses by department and category, headcount, and budget vs. actuals. It’s built with live formulas so it behaves like a real finance dataset, not a flat export.
Download Sample Dataset (.xlsx)
Build your workflow on this dataset to qualify.
- Revenue by Region
- 36 mo.
- Expenses by Dept.
- 36 mo.
- Headcount
- 36 mo.
- Budget vs. Actuals
- Live
- Consolidated P&L
- Live
Register
Ready to take on the challenge?
Submit your AI solution, built on the sample dataset provided. Include a PPT or document explaining your approach, plus an optional video walkthrough.
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Common questions
Still have questions? Register and we’ll walk you through it.