Anglo-Chinese School Team Wins Big at Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2024 with Innovative Smart Glasses

Samsung Electronics Singapore has crowned Team redbluegold from Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) as the grand winner of the Solve for Tomorrow 2024 competition. Their innovative project, SilentGuide, a pair of smart glasses designed to assist people with hearing impairments by transcribing spoken words into subtitles, captured the judges’ attention and earned them the top prize.

Empowering Communication with SilentGuide

Inspired by the need to bridge communication gaps for individuals with hearing impairments, especially in low- to middle-income groups, Team redbluegold, consisting of Aiden Lim and Karan Gopu Pillai, developed SilentGuide. These smart glasses process spoken words in real-time, converting them into subtitles displayed on a screen, helping users participate more meaningfully in conversations.

The technology includes an I2S Microphone to capture audio, a Raspberry Pi 4 to process it, and an I2C OLED screen to display subtitles—all functioning without an internet connection. This innovative solution could benefit over 500,000 individuals with hearing loss in Singapore and millions globally, as hearing impairments are projected to affect over 700 million people by 2050, according to the World Health Organization.

For their groundbreaking project, the team received $7,000 in cash and $10,000 worth of Samsung products, which will help them further develop SilentGuide.

Inspiring Social Change Through Technology

Now in its eighth edition, Samsung’s Solve for Tomorrow competition provides secondary school students with a platform to address social challenges through technology and innovation. This year, the competition saw 75 entries from over 240 students, focusing on themes like environmental sustainability, health and wellness, and Singapore’s digital future.

Other Winning Innovations

• Second Place: Calm Haven by Cedar Girls’ Secondary School
  A smartwatch app designed to support preteens with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in managing communication, emotional regulation, and dietary needs.
• Third Place: Smart Vision by a Multi-School Team
  Smart glasses aimed at improving elderly users’ vision, communication, and navigation while reducing social isolation.
• People’s Choice Award: Health+ by Whitley Secondary School
  A mobile app powered by large language models to simplify medical reports and offer personalized dietary recommendations.

Judges Leading the Way

The judging panel included esteemed industry leaders, such as Lim Ee Ling from Wavesparks, Hyder Albar from Halogen Foundation, and Leonard Tan Bahroocha from Samsung Southeast Asia & Oceania, who evaluated the projects for their creativity, impact, and potential to drive social change.

Building a Better Tomorrow

The Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition continues to inspire youth to create innovative solutions for societal challenges. For more information on this year’s entries and upcoming initiatives, visit Samsung Solve for Tomorrow.