AI in Finance 2025

About

Following the successful launch of the "Generative AI in Finance" conference in 2024, the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University, in collaboration with the Desjardins Centre for Innovation and Financing, is pleased to announce the second edition of the AI in Finance Conference, organized by Denis Schweizer, Juliane Proelss (Concordia University) and Christian Fieberg (Hochschule Bremen and Concordia University) as well as Lars Hornuf (TU Dresden) and Tony Klein (Chemnitz University).

The event will take place in-person in Montréal from October 27 to 30, 2025, with a limited number of virtual presentation slots reserved to accommodate participants facing travel restrictions. Additionally, the conference will be streamed online for interested listeners, and the keynote sessions will be live-streamed. We invite submissions of full papers or extended abstracts of theoretical and empirical research at the frontiers of AI and finance. Please find the first Conference edition program here.

A complimentary networking event will be held on October 31, 2025. 

For the full conference program, please click .

DAY 1 (Oct 27): PhD and Postdoc WORKSHOP— Aimed at early-career researchers with feedback from senior faculty on design and methods in AI and Finance.
DAYS 2–3 (Oct 28–29): MAIN ACADEMIC CONFERENCE— Presentations and discussions on AI applications in Corporate Finance and related areas.
DAY 4 (Oct 30): AI IN REAL ESTATE — Exploring the impact of AI on real estate investment, valuation, and development.
A separate Call for Papers will be issued for the dedicated “PhD Workshop” and "AI in Real Estate" event.
DAY 5 (Oct 31): Networking

Keynote Speakers 

PhD and Postdoc Workshop on Empirical AI in Finance

The PhD and Postdoc Workshop is designed for early-career researchers interested in empirical finance, machine learning, data-driven research, and programming in Matlab. This one-day workshop offers hands-on experience with WRDS data, replication of top-tier finance papers applying machine learning techniques, and interactive feedback from senior faculty. For additional information see here.

Paper Development Workshop and Special Issues 

This conference is associated with the Special Issue in Finance Research Letters on "AI in Corporate Finance". A dedicated paper development workshop will be hosted during the conference to provide authors with feedback from the editorial team. For additional details see the call for papers. 
In addition, a first paper development workshop will take place at TU Dresden on 25-26 September, 2025, organized by Lars Hornuf (TU Dresden), Tony Klein (Chemnitz University), Juliane Proelss (Concordia University), and Denis Schweizer (Concordia University). For submission and additional details, see the TU Dresden workshop webpage. 

Maksim Belitski and David Audretsch, co-guest editor, for the Special Issue on "Entrepreneurship, Crowdfunding and Family Firms: Honoring the Legacy of Christina Guenther" in Small Business Economics offers a paper development workshop. For the call for paper click here.

Please note that acceptance to present at the conference is not a prerequisite for submitting to the Special Issue, nor does it guarantee acceptance into the Special Issue.

Conference Highlights

• The conference will feature a Best Paper Award and a Best Discussant Award, alongside several social activities, including a networking soirée to foster collaboration among scholars and practitioners.
• A dedicated stream on "AI in Entrepreneurship," organized by Maksim Belitski (Loyola University of New Orleans) and David Audretsch (Indiana University Bloomington), will offer further opportunities for academic and practical engagement. For the call for paper click here.
• A dedicated track on "AI in Sustainability and Climate Change," organized by Dr. Matthäus Tekathen (Concordia University, Canada) in collaboration with the Climate Business Institute, will explore how artificial intelligence can address pressing environmental challenges and advance climate innovation. For the call for papers, click here.

AI in Real Estate Day

The “AI and Real Estate” program brings together scholars and practitioners to explore how AI is transforming real estate finance and urban economics. Highlights include a opening address by Jonathan Wener (CEO of Canderel), the keynote by Professor Thies Lindenthal (University of Cambridge), an industry-academic panel with Michael Brooks (CEO of Realpac), and paper presentations. For additional information and the call for papers, click here.

Travel 

The preferred airline partner for the event is Air Canada, offering a discount of up to 10% on eligible fares to Montréal (YUL). The discount is valid for travel within ±7 days of the event. Please enter following code at bookings through aircnada.com VBYA8PZ1.

Program Commitee  

General Conference

Real Estate