FinBuddy

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  Welcome!

Inspiration I was inspired by the lack of accessible, supportive financial guidance for underserved communities. Many people are overwhelmed by traditional financial tools or don’t know where to start. I wanted to build a tool that’s friendly, personalized, and truly helpful, not one tailored towards extracting advisory fees from rich investors.

What It Does FinBuddy offers AI-powered, judgment-free financial advice through chats with expert animal mascots. Users get tailored guidance on investments, debt, retirement, taxes, and general financial wellness, all through a clean, easy-to-use interface.

How I Built It I used React for the frontend and styled it with Tailwind CSS. Gemini's GPT API powers the expert chats, with React Router handling navigation. User data is stored locally in the browser for now. I also used Cursor and ChatGPT to guide me through parts of the project such as deploying Tailwind and finding the best ways to integrate APIs.

Challenges I Ran Into Creating personalized advice without compromising privacy was tough. I also had to fine-tune prompts to ensure the AI felt supportive, not robotic. Limited time meant I had to stay focused on core features, leading to the sacrificing of many ideas that will be talked about in future sections.

Accomplishments That I’m Proud Of I built a fully functional MVP in just a few days, complete with base functionality, clean UI, and secure local storage. I'm proud of how approachable and inclusive the experience feels.

What I Learned I learned how to combine conversational AI with user-focused design, how to handle state and context in React effectively, and how to guide AI tone through careful prompt crafting.

What’s Next for FinBuddy I plan to add progress tracking, multilingual support, and integrate more detailed financial planning tools such as integrating a live stock tracker (which I did in another project) and create personalized Finlit resources based on conversations with my web application's agents. Eventually, I want to partner with nonprofits to expand FinBuddy’s reach in communities that need it most.

Built With

• cursor
• gemini-api
• javascript
• jsx
• react-router
• react.js
• tailwind
• vite