1st Place @ Hack The North: Honkanomics x RBC
Try it out @ honkanomics.com (domain expires Jan 1, 2026)
Github: https://github.com/svn05/v2webhonkonomics
Devpost: https://devpost.com/software/honkanomics
Objective
At Hack the North, my team and I built Honkonomics, a mobile-first, gamified investing platform that teaches financial literacy through a playful “Goose Economy.” The project won the Tech@RBC InvestEase Challenge, beating out hundreds of teams by demonstrating a working end-to-end portfolio management experience on the RBC InvestEase Sandbox.
We built Honkonomics as both a learning tool and a functional investment simulator. Users can create a sandbox client, explore dynamically updated portfolios, run deposits and withdrawals, and get AI-generated explanations of their strategy — all wrapped in a clean RBC-themed UI with live Bank of Canada FX rates.
Honkonomics fits into the same trajectory as my robotics, policy, and digital-society work: engineering systems that don’t just function — they help people understand and engage with the world.
Contributions & Outcomes
My contributions spanned full-stack engineering, product design, and AI integration, including building major UI flows, wiring the FastAPI backend proxy, creating the “Explain My Portfolio” LLM feature, and integrating live FX to support multi-currency displays. The project sharpened my skills in rapid prototyping, API integration, scalable frontend architecture, and collaborative problem-solving under time pressure.
Technical Skills
End-to-end system design: Next.js frontend + FastAPI backend + Supabase persistence.
API engineering: RBC InvestEase Sandbox proxy routes, auto-provisioning logic, FX integration using Bank of Canada Valet.
Modern UI development: Tailwind + Radix + shadcn components for production-grade interfaces.
LLM integration: Portfolio analysis helpers and adaptive mini-courses using OpenAI and Gemini.
Product thinking: Designed an experience that teaches investment fundamentals through interactivity and narrative.
Team execution: Coordinated across engineering, design, and feature prioritization in a 36-hour sprint.
Our awesome team!
Honkanomics on stage! (not sure why the image is rotated)
