CalcLynx wins Rep. Brian Mast’s 2025 Congressional App Challenge in Florida’s 21st District

When asked what inspired the creation of CalcLynx, Makai Pindell said, “As an avid user of Desmos, an online graphing calculator, the idea for CalcLynx was first sparked when I found myself intuitively using Desmos as a scratchpad to solve math problems. However, Desmos is limited to a single math ‘stack’ (i.e., the math is confined to a single expression list), making it challenging to work with problems that require multiple layers (e.g., integration by parts, partial fraction decomposition, or Lagrange multipliers). This made me wonder if there was a way to instantiate the expression list in a whiteboard, allowing users to place math anywhere.

“Initially, I attempted to search for variants of Excalidraw, a free and open-source whiteboard application, but I found no tools that allowed me to type math directly. The only available preview only supported direct LaTeX, meaning that users must write LaTeX code to insert their math expressions on the page.

“It was then that I realized I would have to build it myself. As I began building CalcLynx, it was originally a small solution to my own problem. However, when I noticed that many of my friends had difficulty with handwriting too (as seen in the demonstration slides), I realized the potential benefit and impact that this product could have. Inspired by other free, open-source software solutions, I designed CalcLynx with a serverless, frontend-only architecture, allowing anyone to use it for free and make modifications as needed.”