CitySense

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Inspiration

Having encountered problems in our daily life, CitySense was created with the mission to provide a forum for residents around Sydney to express their concerns about issues in their neighborhoods. We wanted to help newcomers and stay-at-home residents stay informed about what’s happening around their neighborhood.

What it does

CitySense serves as a heat-integrated map that summarizes all reports from residents, illustrating their level of satisfaction. Each suburb will display a detailed chart of each mood state, showing the percentage of residents who feel a certain way about their living situation.

How we built it

We built the app with a Node.js and Express.js backend that connects to a pre-trained AI model. On the frontend, we used Next.js to create a fast and modern user interface, integrating AI capabilities through both our backend model with the help of OpenAI and Claude.

Challenges we ran into

Tailwind version propblem, Environment and Dependency Issues:

Problem: The front-end (e.g., React) and back-end (e.g., Node.js, Django) may rely on different environments, causing integration issues when deployed or tested together.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

During the hackathon, we faced countless hurdles—technical bugs, time pressure, and moments of doubt—but what kept us moving forward was the power of friendship. Instead of letting the stress pull us apart, we leaned on one another’s strengths, shared encouragement when things felt impossible, and celebrated even the smallest wins together. By trusting and supporting each other, we transformed challenges into opportunities for collaboration, proving that teamwork and camaraderie can turn obstacles into stepping stones toward success.

What we learned

Through this project, the frontend team acquired new coding techniques and explored various methods to build features more efficiently, gaining valuable experience with modern frameworks. Meanwhile, the backend team recognized the types of challenges that can arise when collaborating with less experienced coders, helping them develop greater patience, more transparent communication, and improved problem-solving approaches for future projects.

What's next for CitySense

Currently, our web app is limited to serving users in the Sydney suburbs; however, our next step is to expand coverage nationwide across all of Australia. We also plan to integrate more advanced AI support to enhance user experience, making the system more innovative, more responsive, and better tailored to user needs as we scale.