Finance Buddy

Our financial advisor app empowers everyone. By delivering intelligent and personalized financial guidance, we help users, especially those in underserved communities.

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Inspiration

We were inspired by how many people struggle with financial decision-making, especially when it comes to understanding budgeting, saving, investing, and managing debt.

  • Two-thirds of adults worldwide are financially illiterate. Only 1 in 3 can answer basic questions about interest, inflation, and risk.
  • More than 50% of people who want financial advice say they can’t afford it.

Financial literacy is often inaccessible to those in underserved communities, further widening the economic gap. In line with UN Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities, we aimed to build a tool that makes trustworthy, personalized financial guidance available to everyone, regardless of their background or financial knowledge.

What it does

Our app acts as a personal financial advisor powered by AI. Users can ask questions and receive intelligent, tailored responses. The app also includes a task manager that creates actionable steps based on user goals, and a profile tab that tracks financial info such as income, expenses, and location to personalize advice.

By providing inclusive access to financial knowledge and empowering users with guidance that’s often only available through paid advisors, the app helps reduce information inequality and promotes financial independence, directly supporting SDG 10.

How we built it

We built the app using Expo and React Native, which allowed us to create a beautiful and performant experience for both iOS and Android devices from a single codebase. We used TypeScript to enforce type safety and scalability, and Expo Router with React Navigation to organize app screens. For persistent data storage, we integrated AsyncStorage, and for AI functionality, we used the OpenAI API to deliver smart and context-aware financial advice. The UI was enhanced using modern design principles.

Challenges we ran into

  • Getting all dependencies to align with Expo SDK 52, especially as React Native and React versions continue to evolve.
  • Ensuring the OpenAI API responses felt helpful and personalized. We send the user profile details along with the last 10 message history pairs for improving personalization.
  • Managing state across tabs in a clean way while maintaining responsiveness on both iOS & Android platforms.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

  • Building and testing a fully functional cross-platform app within the limited hackathon time frame.
  • Seamlessly integrating AI to provide value in a sensitive area like personal finance.
  • Creating a user-friendly and intuitive design that feels welcoming to people who might be overwhelmed by financial apps.

What we learned

  • How to use Expo to access native features without ejecting or writing platform-specific code.
  • Best practices for structuring a scalable React Native app using Expo Router.
  • The importance of keeping UX simple and focused — especially when dealing with complex topics like finance.
  • How to debug and align multiple dependencies across React, React Native, and Expo environments.

What's next for Finance Buddy

  • Add more international language support
  • Add a budget tracking feature that syncs with bank accounts or spending logs. Use Plaid or other APIs.
  • Build in push notifications for reminders and goal tracking.
  • Expand the financial knowledge base by building RAG base databases of common FAQs
  • Expand the task list from static to more AI generated.
  • Gamify the app with features such as streaks, badges etc.
  • Launch the app to the public via TestFlight and Google Play internal testing for real-world feedback.
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