Young Innovators from AP Develop Cutting-Edge Prototypes to Solve Local Challenges

Bengaluru:  The spirit of innovation was alive and thriving as Quest Alliance successfully concluded its groundbreaking five-day hackathon, Hack to the Future: Innovating for Participatory Futures. Bringing together over 57 young innovators from five states — Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Odisha — the 2025 hackathon empowered students to develop scalable solutions to real-world challenges.

Held from January 27 to 31 at the Quest Learning Observatory (QLO) in Bengaluru the hackathon fostered creativity, technological expertise, and problem-solving skills. Young participants from diverse backgrounds came together, breaking language barriers to collaborate, explore new technologies, and engage with industry role models. Over the 5-days learners developed their prototypes integrating advancements in AI, IoT, and sustainable technologies. The event concluded with a grand showcase where students presented their solutions to a distinguished jury.

Ten learners from Andhra Pradesh’s APMS Mattam Sariyapalli and KGBV Ponnada, Srikakulam district, made their state proud with innovative prototypes that address real-life challenges faced by their communities. These young problem solvers refined their ideas throughout the hackathon and presented their projects before an esteemed jury.

In Andhra Pradesh, since 2019 through our STEM work, the Alliance reached around 60,000 learners in 137 schools and have trained over 500+ Educators on Computational Training and 21st century skills. This year, an MOU signed was signed with the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, Andhra Pradesh to institute the AI curriculum in the State expanding to Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam.

The standout prototype from the students of APMS Mattam Sariyapalli was an intelligent monitoring device designed for livestock. A simple yet powerful wearable band placed around a cow’s neck helps track its movement and health. The idea stemmed from personal observations of livestock straying from herds and falling ill unexpectedly, affecting rural livelihoods. By leveraging IoT technology, these young minds created a solution that directly impacts their pastoral community.

The second prototype, developed by KGBV Ponnada students, focused on mental health — a chatbot designed for hostel residents struggling with loneliness. The chatbot provides comfort and emotional support to students away from home and is programmed to alert counselors and parents if it detects concerning keywords like “suicide.” This innovation addresses the urgent need for accessible mental health resources in student communities. The hackathon is in keeping with the 3-year MoU signed between Samagra Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA), Andhra Pradesh, Quest Alliance and Leadership for Equity (LFE) under Amazon’s Future Engineer program (AFE) to create to deepen AI understanding through foundational knowledge and hands-on experience, preparing learners for future tech-driven careers is making ripples in the state’s government schools.