Team
redbluegold’s
Aiden
Lim
(left),
receiving
the
prize
from
Dennis
Jang,
President,
Samsung
Electronics
Singapore
(right),
as
the
grand
winner
of
Samsung
Solve
for
Tomorrow
2024
in
Singapore
As
the
grand
winner,
Team
redbluegold
received
$7,000
in
cash
and
$10,000
worth
of
Samsung
products,
providing
them
with
the
resources
to
further
develop
their
project
and
make
a
tangible
impact.
Into its eight edition this year, the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition is designed to ignite the passion for championing social change among youths in Singapore. By providing a platform for secondary school students to contribute ideas that address social issues through technology and innovation, Solve for Tomorrow has inspired thousands of youths over the years to become changemakers who are helping to create a better future for their communities.
This year’s Solve for Tomorrow competition received 75 entries from over 240 secondary school students, contributing ideas that focused on five key themes – Environmental Sustainability; Health, Sports and Wellness; Inclusive Harmonious Society; Learning and Education; and Singapore’s Digital Future.
Breaking Barriers: Smart Glasses Transforms Communication For The Hearing Impaired
Inspired to help low- to middle-income individuals with hearing impairment bridge existing communications gaps and participate more meaningfully in the society, Team redbluegold set out to develop a solution that is wearable, convenient to use and low in cost. Following several iterations, the team developed SilentGuide – a pair of smart glasses that processes spoken words from an individual’s surroundings and transcribes them into subtitles, to help users with hearing impairment understand and take part in social conversations.
(From
left)
Prototype
for
SilentGuide,
a
student
trying
out
SilentGuide,
and
the
3D
printing
process
while
developing
the
SilentGuide
prototype
The
solution
utilises
an
I2S
Microphone
to
capture
spoken
words
in
real-time
and
transmits
the
information
to
a
Raspberry
Pi
4,
which
processes
the
audio
and
transcribes
the
audio
into
subtitles.
The
resulting
subtitles
are
displayed
on
an
I2C
OLED
Screen
for
the
user
to
read.
Designed to function independently without an internet connection, SilentGuide has the potential to enhance communication and social integration for up to 500,000 individuals with hearing loss in Singapore. The solution can also benefit a growing number of people with disabling hearing loss worldwide. According to the World Health Organization, 430 million people have disabling hearing loss globally, a number expected to exceed 700 million people by 2050.
“Many individuals with hearing impairment don’t have access to affordable solutions that can help them bridge the communication gap. Our solution, SilentGuide, aims to address the communication challenges they face, helping them to participate more meaningfully in social conversations. With the convenience it provides and its relatively low cost, SilentGuide will empower individuals with hearing loss to live more fulfilling lives,” said Aiden Lim.
“Today, the world is navigating unprecedented social and economic challenges. It is more urgent now than ever to ignite the desire to champion social change among our youths, encourage them to think deeply about societal issues and leverage technology and resources to shape a better tomorrow. I am inspired by the creativity, imagination and heart showcased by our youths at this year’s Solve for Tomorrow competition. Their ideas not only reflect a deep passion for creating a better Singapore, they also demonstrate that with boldness and imagination, our youths can truly transform our community and the world,” said Dennis Jang, President of Samsung Electronics Singapore and a member of the Solve for Tomorrow 2024 judging panel.
This
year’s
Solve
for
Tomorrow
judging
panel
also
featured
industry
leaders
who
are
passionate
about
inspiring
youth
action
and
leadership.
These
include
Lim
Ee
Ling,
Co-founder
and
CEO
of
Wavesparks,
Executive
Director
for
Global
Programs
at
500
Global,
and
Council
Member
of
the
National
Youth
Council;
Hyder
Albar,
Head
of
Social
Innovation
at
Halogen
Foundation;
and
Leonard
Tan
Bahroocha,
Director
and
Head
of
Product
Innovation
Team
at
Samsung
Southeast
Asia
&
Oceania.
Shaping
a
Better
Tomorrow
for
All
with
Technology
and
Innovation
(From
left)
Team
Calm
Haven
receiving
their
prize
from
Lim
Ee
Ling,
Co-founder
and
CEO
of
Wavesparks,
Executive
Director
for
Global
Programs
at
500
Global
and
Council
Member
of
the
National
Youth
Council;
key
features
of
the
Calm
Haven
app
Team
Calm
Haven
from
Cedar
Girls’
Secondary
School
secured
second
place
with
their
project,
Calm
Haven
–
a
smartwatch
application
designed
to
help
preteens
with
autism
spectrum
disorder
(ASD)
overcome
daily
communication,
emotional
regulation
and
dietary
challenges.
The
app
incorporates
communication
aids
to
help
users
express
themselves,
emotion-tracking
alerts
to
inform
guardians
when
users
are
feeling
overwhelmed
and
an
eating
diary
to
help
users
and
caregivers
track
their
nutritional
intake.
With
the
app,
the
team
hopes
individuals
with
ASD
will
have
greater
ability
to
communicate,
perform
daily
tasks
and
integrate
better
into
the
society.
(From
left,
clockwise)
Navigation
function
in
Smart
Vision,
Team
Smart
Vision
working
on
their
prototype,
Smart
Vision
prototype,
Smart
Vision
mock-up
The
third
prize
went
to
Team
Smart
Vision,
comprising
of
students
from
Hwa
Chong
Institution,
Nanyang
Girls’
High
School
and
the
School
of
Science
and
Technology,
Singapore.
Their
solution,
Smart
Vision,
is
a
pair
of
smart
glasses
aimed
at
improving
the
vision,
communication
and
navigation
to
improve
the
overall
quality
of
life
for
the
elderly.
Smart
Vision
incorporates
a
speech
recognition
system
and
speaker
that
transcribes
spoken
words
into
text
displayed
on
the
glasses,
a
navigation
function
that
guides
the
user
via
an
onscreen
map
and
audio
instructions
to
the
destination,
and
a
hearing
aid
that
enhances
audio
clarity
for
the
user.
With
the
smart
glasses,
the
team
aims
to
help
elderly
users
overcome
communication
barriers
and
reduce
social
isolation
to
lead
more
fulfilling
lives.
Health+,
a
Personalised
Nutrition
Guide
and
Assistant
that
aims
to
simplify
health
management
to
improve
overall
health
outcomes
for
patients
Team
Health+
from
Whitley
Secondary
School
won
the
People’s
Choice
Award
for
receiving
the
most
online
votes
for
their
project,
Health+
–
a
mobile
application
that
uses
a
large
language
model
(LLM)
to
interpret
complicated
medical
reports
and
provide
personalised
dietary
recommendations.
By
simplifying
health
management
through
the
app,
the
team
hopes
to
improve
overall
health
outcomes
for
patients.
“By leveraging the power of technology to champion social change, our youths have unlimited potential to transform their community, country and eventually the world. Solve for Tomorrow provides them with the platform, technology, resources and opportunities to bring their ideas for social change to life. The exposure to innovative ways of thinking and new ways of solving social problems will empower them with the confidence to become the change that they want to see in our society in time to come,” said Hyder Albar, Head of Social Innovation at Halogen Foundation.
For more information on the Solve for Tomorrow 2024 competition, see Appendix A or visit https://www.samsung.com/sg/solvefortomorrow/.
Appendix A
About Samsung Solve for Tomorrow
The Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2024 competition in Singapore was launched on 27 May 2024. Designed to ignite the passion for championing social change among youths, the competition provides a platform for secondary school students to express their creativity and passion, and address social issues through technology and innovation.
Competition Overview
Youths aged 12 and above and are full-time Secondary 1 – 5 students in Singapore are eligible for the competition. For students in secondary schools with 6-year Integrated Programme (IP), only full-time students in Secondary 1 – 4 are eligible to participate. The full list of eligible schools is available here.
This year’s competition received 75 entries from over 240 secondary school students, focusing on five key themes – Environmental Sustainability; Health, Sports and Wellness; Inclusive Harmonious Society; Learning and Education; and Singapore’s Digital Future.
10 finalist teams were shortlisted to participate in the finals, where they presented their ideas to a panel of judges, for a chance to win up to $37,000 in prizes. The finals took place on 14 November 2024.
The ideas from the 10 finalist teams were also made available for online voting by the public. The finalist team with the most votes won the People’s Choice Award.
Judging Criteria for Finalist Teams
- 30%: Feasibility – Elaboration on how the solution can be created and implemented.
- 20%: Creativity – Innovativeness, uniqueness and originality of proposed idea.
- 25%: Technology – Elaboration on the use of technology involved and how it is used to solve the problem.
- 20%: Presentation – Flow and effectiveness of the presentation.
- 5%: Public Voting – Finalists’ ideas were posted online for public voting.
- First Prize – Samsung products worth $10,000 and $7,000 cash prize
- Second Prize – Samsung products worth S$7,000 and $5,000 cash prize
- Third Prize – Samsung products worth S$5,000 and $3,000 cash prize
- People’s Choice Award: Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Pro
Hashtag: #Samsung #SolveForTomorrow
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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