Building an AI-powered matchmaking platform for enhanced business partner matches

Parker Christie and Dushyant Puri, SMART Centre

This SMART Centre project focused on developing a prototype web application to help companies connect with one another during international trade events and missions. Businesses entering new markets often struggle to find relevant contacts, even after attending the same events. The goal was to create a tool that uses AI to recommend connections between companies with shared interests, helping them stay engaged beyond the event itself. 

The resulting prototype allows users to create company profiles and receive a similarity score when viewing potential matches. The platform also factors in shared event attendance to improve match relevance. An admin dashboard was developed to manage data, and an initial company dataset was used to train the AI system and support early testing. 

Future development could focus on expanding the platform’s ability to make cross-border matches. Early testing with data from North American and Brazilian companies highlighted the need for more nuanced comparisons, as companies often describe themselves differently depending on their region. Continued refinement of the AI model could improve accuracy and support broader global engagement.