Q Life Magazine Q Magazine December 2018 | Page 43

Innovate & Inspire | Mohammed Al Jefairi The SeeDo attitude of a young innovator Stars of Science inventor Mohammed Al Jefairi talks about his current project to help hearing-impaired children and people with disabilities How did Stars of Science allow you to grow as an inventor? What did you hope to achieve from being part of the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) this year? Stars of Science is a powerful shortcut for any great idea. It’s a path for shifting your invention to the next level. WISH is another shortcut that has a huge potential for providing a great forward shift to an innovation along its journey, and I am looking forward to seeing what we can create. Can you tell us about your invention SeeDo, the robot that communicates with hearing-impaired children to improve their vocabulary? This interactive learning technology – or friendly robot named ‘Robert SeeDo’- helps children learn sign language, and makes learning fun. Studies show that the early years of a child’s life are the most crucial learning period of all. By the age of just six years old, the average child will have picked up 1,000 words in their vocabulary. In that time, a hearing-impaired child will have picked up only 50 words. These children risk getting left behind by society as they struggle to communicate clearly and fully interact with the world around them. I realised technology could bring massive advances for 43