23rd May 2023, Kathmandu
Samsung Electronics Singapore announced the sixth edition Solve for Tomorrow competition winners, with teams SHMID.CO from ITE College Central and Hearable from Nanyang Technological University took home top honors for the Post-secondary and University categories respectively.
Launched in October 2022, Solve for Tomorrow encourages youths to take a proactive approach to address Singapore’s key challenges by providing them with a platform to ideate and apply their knowledge and skills across multiple disciplines, including Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), to make a meaningful impact in our community.
“I’m encouraged to see that youths in Singapore are passionate about solving real-world challenges and equipped with the ideas and knowledge to make tangible, positive changes in our communities. We will continue motivating youths by providing the resources and platform they need to unleash their creativity and elevate their digital technology skills, supporting them on their journey to become the true architects of our future,” said Dennis Jang, President of Samsung Electronics Singapore.
Dennis was one of the three judges that evaluated the students’ submissions in the final round of the competition. The other judges were Timothy Low, Chief Operating Officer, of Halogen Foundation Singapore, and Tham Jierong, Assistant CEO and Head of Venture Building of Singapore Centre for Social Enterprise (raiSE).
Winners of the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2022 competition
The winning teams were selected from over 90 groups comprising more than 270 students in Singapore. The top team from each category walked away with $12,000 worth of Samsung products and a $5,000 cash prize.
More details of the winning teams are as followed: Categories Prizes Teams Submissions Post-secondary category 1st SHMID.CO Battery monitoring, fire prevention device powered by IOT 2nd Kiasu Hawker All-in-one digitalized hawker platform 3rd Mute Development of natural and sustainable acoustic materials for sound absorption People’s Choice Awards PaperHouse Smart interactive soft toy for child patients University category 1st Hearable Communication aid for hard-of-hearing individuals, powered by AR and AI 2nd Wave Communication devise for individuals with cerebral palsy powered by AR 3rd HarmonySG Inpatient physiotherapy management system with gamification features
People’s Choice Awards HarmonySG Post-secondary category winner: SHMID.CO from ITE College Central Team SHMID.CO[2] developed a low-cost and functional monitoring device that allows users to monitor and remotely turn off charging batteries due to overheating. The sensor can be used with most household charging devices, such as mobile phones, personal mobility devices (PMDs), and any other electrical appliances. Users will be alerted by an alarm through a buzzer and receive an SMS alert on their mobile phones if the charging device is detected to be overheating.
The sensor also turns off the charger automatically when the battery is fully charged. This helps to prevent overcharging of batteries, avoid fire hazards, and save electricity which supports the reduction of carbon emissions while keeping in line with Singapore’s Green Plan 2030.
“We are grateful to have the chance to participate in Samsung’s Solve for Tomorrow Competition. It allowed us to bring our ideas to life and motivated us to create a feasible system that can be implemented across all households.
Through our invention, we hope to improve fire safety at home for Singapore residents, while enabling families to significantly reduce their energy usage and carbon emissions,” said Shing Foo Chuan Zheng, Team Leader, SHMID.CO, School of Engineering, Aerospace Avionics, ITE College Central.
University category winner: Hearable from Nanyang Technological University
Team Hearable developed a two-part solution that enables hard-of-hearing individuals to communicate using a pair of AR glasses that can transcribe speech in real-time by leveraging AI. The mobile application also allows users to turn type-written speech into spoken words.
“Solve for Tomorrow is an excellent proving ground for our team to test and refine our idea. We are excited and humbled to win this competition, and we hope our solution can help enrich the lives of hard-of-hearing individuals. As digital technology plays a vital role in shaping our lives, we will continue to harness its power to create a more inclusive society,” shared Christopher Santoso, Team Leader, Hearable, Nanyang Technological University.
“It is clear from this competition that our youths are a wellspring for innovation, bringing fresh perspectives and new thinking to tackle the challenges we face. What stood out for me was their creativity and critical and entrepreneurial spirit. I look forward to seeing how our next generation of leaders and innovators will continue to crystalize their ideas, scale their solutions and make a meaningful difference to our communities,” added Tham Jierong.
In a Samsung online poll[4] comprising 92 Gen Z respondents in Singapore, 82% of respondents felt empowered to be actively involved in addressing Singapore’s societal and environmental challenges. Nearly 2 in 5 Gen Zs (38%) are changing their lifestyle to help solve these challenges. Another 29% are shaping their career path toward a role that can help solve these challenges.
Building up Youths’ Proficiency and Confidence in Digital Technology Gen Zs today also recognize the crucial role that digital technology plays in the nation’s future. More than 40% of poll respondents highlighted that its greatest benefit to Singapore is to help its economy remain competitive over the next five years.
However, despite recognizing digital technology’s importance, only 55% of Gen Zs are confident they have the skills and knowledge to stay relevant and succeed in Singapore’s future digital economy.
More than two in five Gen Zs (45%) feel that offering more opportunities for students to hone their digital skills and knowledge and integrating cutting-edge digital tools in school activities and curricula are most important to them when it comes to transforming education for the digital economy.
Through the Solve for Tomorrow competition, Samsung aims to spark youth’s curiosity in digital technology and expand their knowledge through experimentation and practical application. This will help youths build their confidence and proficiency in digital technologies.
“What impressed me was the finalist teams’ competent use of technology – including AR and AI – to tackle a wide range of issues in our society. I’m confident that the technical knowledge and expertise the teams gained from this competition will be invaluable assets for their future, and we hope their success will inspire many of their peers,” said Timothy Low.
“Gen Zs have never known life without the internet and mobile devices. They are the true digital natives with remarkable potential to develop society-changing solutions.
At Samsung, we are committed to ensuring that they can flourish in the new technology-driven future and reach new heights in innovation,” concluded Dennis.
