PURC Student Case Competition
Step into the future of energy, AI, and business leadership
The Public Utility Research Center (PURC) at the Warrington College of Business invites University of Florida students to participate in the inaugural 2026 PURC Student Case Competition—a high-impact opportunity to tackle one of the most important challenges facing modern businesses: governing artificial intelligence in critical infrastructure.
This is not a theoretical exercise. You will work on a realistic case involving a major electric utility navigating how to deploy AI while protecting data, ensuring security and meeting regulatory demands. From smart grid analytics to cybersecurity and real-time system optimization, the decisions you make mirror those being faced by executives, regulators and policymakers today.
Join the competition
Designed for forward-thinking graduate and undergraduate students, the competition bridges academic learning with practical decision-making and problem solution—where technology, policy and business strategy collide.
Apply by September 18, 5 pm.
Eligibility to apply and team formation
The competition is open to University of Florida undergraduate and graduate students. Participants may compete on only one team.
- Students may apply individually or as part of a team
- Individual applicants, if selected, will be placed on a team by the competition hosts
- Each team must be led by a student enrolled in a Warrington College of Business major
- Teams must include at least two qualifying students; there is no formal maximum
- Team leader or team member representative must attend at least one of two pre-competition information sessions. Info sessions will be held over Zoom but not recorded. Failure to show up for an information session will result in team disqualification. Such team will be removed and replaced with a team on the waiting list. If you need to cancel attending an info session for any reason, please notify us as soon as possible to avoid this.
- Space is limited to a restricted number of teams. If entrants exceed capacity, a faculty-led committee will pre-select up to six teams to compete, based on a broad representation of undergraduate/graduate students and majors.
- Failure to show up or arrive on time for the live in-person competition will result in disqualification to compete in future PURC competitions.
The competition
On the day of the competition, selected teams will receive a proprietary case developed by PURC that reflects one or more current issues of AI governance for a major electricity provider.
- Teams will be given a case and have three hours to analyze the case and develop a unique solution.
- Each team will deliver a 20-minute presentation, followed by 15 minutes of Q&A.
- Final presentations will be delivered at a public event to be held in the Warrington College of Business, space limitations may apply for public attendance.
Mandatory information sessions and access to relevant business resources will be provided to support participants throughout the process.
Presentations are evaluated by a panel of faculty and professionals from the utility, regulatory and business communities. Judges assess both the substance of the recommendation and the rigor of the supporting analysis.
Evaluation criteria
Judges consider:
- Concept strength and originality.
- Market understanding and competitive context.
- Financial and economic viability.
- Operational and technical feasibility.
- Governance and management implications.
- Financing approach and risk assessment.
- Realistic implementation timeline.
Judges additionally evaluate the clarity of assumptions, the quality of sensitivities and financial analysis, and the consideration of cross-functional impacts.
All judging decisions are final.
Presentations should clearly address:
- Concept or company overview.
- Value proposition.
- Opportunity and problem definition.
- Proposed solution and strategic rationale.
- Role of artificial intelligence, if applicable, including techniques employed.
- Competitive differentiation.
- Revenue model and key success metrics.
- Industry landscape.
- Management team and advisors necessary for implementation.
All submitted work must be original and created exclusively for this competition.
- Winning teams receive trophies/awards based on judges’ decision of first, second and third place.
- The top team will be featured on the Warrington College of Business website.
- Selected teams may receive additional industry or media exposure.
- Other recognitions when appropriate.
- All participants must be currently enrolled UF students.
- Non-students may not participate.
- Teams must certify UF student status.
- This competition is intended for students without prior paid or formal professional experience in utilities, regulation or governance.
All presentations are considered non-confidential. Ideas and concepts presented may be disclosed at the discretion of the competition hosts, and no intellectual property protection is provided.
Competition structure and rules are subject to change prior to official competition date, as deemed necessary by hosts, and will be posted to this website. Failure to comply with competition rules, deadlines or academic integrity standards may result in disqualification at the discretion of the University of Florida and PURC.
Key dates
- Intent to compete deadline: September 18, 2026, by 5 p.m.
- Finalist notification: September 25, 2026
- Pre-competition mandatory Zoom information sessions: (dates TBD)
- Final in-person presentations: October 24, 2026
Pre-competition session dates and live competition schedule subject to confirmation.
Learn more
Students interested in competing or learning more about the process are encouraged to contact the Public Utility Research Center.