10/12/2020

IMPA and Stone: mathematics and industry for granting credit.

A good deal for the financial sector, academia, and anyone needing credit. A partnership between IMPA and Stone gave rise to a Machine Learning seminar focused on solving a concrete problem presented by the company and fundamental to the country: granting credit to legal entities.

For four months, researchers and students from IMPA with complementary skills formed a team that, with the support of the fintech company, tackled challenges in the financial sector to achieve impactful results. This effort resulted in a machine learning algorithm capable of assisting Stone's credit decisions and which, according to the company, will have practical implications in its mission to unlock this market.

The group, consisting of one doctoral student and three master's students, led by professors Paulo Orenstein and Vitor Guerra, with the participation of researchers Roberto Imbuzeiro and Luciano Irineu , worked based on solutions developed by Stone. From March to June, they tackled the challenges, and at the end of the course, the team was able to surpass all the proposed goals and, with new perspectives and insights, helped solve a cutting-edge knowledge problem, collaborating with a major Brazilian company in the market.

The seminar aimed to teach machine learning tools to solve the problem presented by Stone. In addition to applying existing algorithms, the group developed research topics based on real-world problems, fulfilling IMPA's academic mission. The work will also result in the publication of an academic article. “It's a collaborative approach, of a different kind, done directly with industry and on concrete cases. It was a very positive experience,” assessed IMPA's Director-General, Marcelo Viana. “ Many issues coming from the productive sector end up becoming profound problems in Applied Mathematics. This enriches both sides ,” said Orenstein.

“For us, the partnership was very positive. We brought together talents from both organizations, with complementary experiences, and the result could not have been otherwise: a rewarding journey with many learning experiences for both sides,” said Bernardo Piquet, partner and head of Institutional Relations at Stone.

As is common in North American universities, the course was based on the "project-based learning model," Orenstein highlighted, in which students and professors dedicate themselves throughout the semester to solving a case or problem. "The seminar is based on code and research. Our progress has always been tested through the code we develop, and now we intend to elaborate on our ideas, both from a theoretical and practical point of view, in an academic article to be published ," Imbuzeiro added.

IMPA will offer a new course in this format in the first semester of 2021, to teach students machine learning tools based on a high-impact project . The 1.5-hour seminars will take place twice a week and will be led by professors Paulo Orenstein and Roberto Imbuzeiro.

Multidisciplinary team drove results

“The multidisciplinary composition of the team was a highlight of the seminar. Besides providing fruitful discussions with distinct and complementary perspectives, it contributed to developing creative and comprehensive solutions. The environment was always stimulating,” said João Vitor Romano, a professional master's student with experience in the financial market.

For doctoral student Thiago Ramos, the weekly challenges forced them to learn new skills ranging from how to structure code to new mathematical theorems. "Overcoming these challenges as a group is a very rewarding feeling that we recommend to every IMPA student, whether more theoretical or applied."

The Mathematics and Industry Workshop inaugurated a partnership.

In February, Stone was one of the participants in the “Mathematics and Industry Workshop,” organized by IMPA to bring academia closer to the productive sector, alongside Petrobras, Hurb (Hotel Urbano), and McKinsey & Company. In partnership with the Center for Mathematical Sciences Applied to Industry (CeMEAI) at USP, the event brought together more than 300 students, researchers, and business managers over two days to learn about tools for solving real-world problems, exploring the mathematical potential .

Guilherme Silva, partner and Head of Financial Products at the payment company, emphasizes that "the opportunity to regularly exchange ideas with IMPA students and professors greatly contributed to building the solution, bringing new insights and tools to our team."