Two Nigerian girls have brought global recognition to the country after winning the 2025 Technovation Global Summit (Beginner Division) with an artificial intelligence (AI) solution designed to combat drowsy and distracted driving.
The winners, 10-year-old Akachukwu Blessed Nwachukwu and Ifunanya Gabriella Okoye, both from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, created Stay Woke — an AI-powered mobile app that employs facial recognition and voice interaction to monitor drivers in real time. The app detects signs of fatigue or distraction and issues alerts aimed at reducing road accidents.
Competing under the name Team Appsolute, the pair outperformed teams from Japan, Spain, Canada, and Peru to clinch the global title at the summit’s grand finale.
Technovation, the world’s largest tech entrepreneurship programme for girls aged 8–18, attracted more than 33,000 participants from 117 countries this year. Of these, 11,000 completed the programme, producing over 3,200 tech-based.
Their mentor, Somkenechukwu Mamah, founder of Code Ambassadors Academy, hailed the win as a milestone for African innovation.
“This victory proves that innovation knows no age or boundary. Akachukwu and Ifunanya have demonstrated resilience, creativity, and courage, showing that young people in Nigeria and across Africa can compete — and win — on the global stage,” he said.
The girls, who were trained through Code Ambassadors Academy — a STEM-accredited platform that has equipped more than 7,000 Nigerian children with coding, robotics, AI, and design skills — expressed gratitude to their mentor and parents for their guidance and support.
For Team Appsolute, the triumph is more than just a national win. “It is for every girl who dreams of transforming the world through technology,” they said.
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