“We’ll spend the prize money on Eyenaemia development”

WINNERS TAKE IT ALL: Aussie duo Jennifer Tang and Jarrel Seah savour the moment of their lives at the Washington State Convention Center.      Photo by Aamir Attaa

By Kamran Rehmat

SEATTLE — The atmosphere at the Washington State Convention Center for the grand finale of the Imagine Cup World Championships is electric.

After all, the Microsoft-sponsored premier global student technology competition is capping two days of invigorating presentations made by 125 students from 34 participating countries, who have reached the world finals — from an original field of approximately 33,000 students across a hundred countries worldwide!

As well as announcing winners for each of the Games, Innovation and World Citizenship categories, the grand final involves winners of each category priming for a set of nerve-testing questions from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadela; Code.org Founder Hadi Partovi; and Reddit.com General Manager Erik Martin, for the trophy — before an audience that includes 4,000 Microsoft staff.

As the rapid-fire round heat rises, my mind harks back to the previous day when I predicted to the Australian team and other inquisitive Microsoft staffers who asked me over lunch, at the product fair and during envisioning tour around the Microsoft campus that the duo of Jarrel Seah and Jennifer Tang would win.

Their brilliant project, superb execution, neat presentation and a very convincing Q&A with the panel of judges leaves little doubt in my mind that they will take some beating.

When the other finalists from Russia and New Zealand struggle to respond to questions surrounding the business end of their projects, and Jarrel confidently tells Microsoft CEO that insurance companies could use their app as a “preventative health measure” in response to a question about how the Aussie team would market their app to the governmental and non-governmental organisations in the developed world, it becomes a little obvious that one would be in good company!

The Convention Center erupts with loud cheers as the two Jays duly lift the Imagine Cup trophy along with a cash prize of US$50,000 and a much coveted mentoring session with the legendary Bill Gates to follow.

Jarrel and Jennifer win many friends in Seattle during the course of the Imagine Cup but Gulf Times pips the competition to get an exclusive interview with the much acclaimed winners. Profuse thanks are delivered with a smile when the prediction comes up for mention.   

Jarrel Seah is a medical student at Monash University with a keen interest in physics and programming. A former gold medallist in International Physics Olympiad, he has continued his pursuit of all things technical by joining a Melbournian game studio as its lead programmer, releasing web and iOS based apps. He has taken a year off from his medical degree to conduct research into the application of computer science and vision in medicine.

Jennifer Tang is a final year medical student at Monash University, too, who pursues Rural and Remote medicine. She envisions the use of technology improving health in these sectors.

She has experience in publication, promotions and design and is currently, the executive publications officer for the Australian Medical Students’ Association, producing publications for more than 17,000 medical students across Australia.

Herewith excerpts of an interview with the dynamic Jays:

Tell us something about your family roots and initiation into technology.

Jarrel: I grew up in Singapore and was always interested in technology. I’ve since moved to Australia to study and live. My family, including my elder brother, has always been into technology. My favourite concept in technology is automation — I strongly believe that computing — the automation of cognition, will free up humans to think about higher concepts just like how the steam engine freed us from using animal and human muscle. 

Jennifer: My family is very supportive of my pursuits and is very excited about our winning the Imagine Cup. I was born in Melbourne and grew up there. I believe that technology has the ability to change the way we practice medicine and this has fueled my interest in MedTech. It is something that I have come to enjoy thoroughly throughout my medical degree.

Is there a story behind what triggered your search to develop the Eyenaemia app?

We are both medical students who have worked in rural and remote areas of Australia. Whilst working in these areas we saw a high prevalence of anaemia. We also understood that many people had to travel long distances to get medical care. This gave birth to the idea of a simple and quick screening solution which is Eyenaemia.

What does your winning the Imagine Cup mean to you?

Winning the Imagine Cup for us has meant that we are a step closer to achieving our goal — to help people in developing countries with technology.

What is the single most inspiring thing about Imagine Cup?

Meeting other teams and discussing how technology can be used to improve the world has been one of the most inspirational parts of the Imagine Cup.

What was your gut feeling when the final round involving the Games and Innovation winners began?

We were very excited that we had just won the World Citizenship category and saw this as an opportunity to share our ideas with the judges.

Did you fancy your chances, especially when it became obvious that the Russians and New Zealanders floundered at the last hurdle?

We did not think that we would get to that point and weren’t expecting to win. But of course, we went in trying our hardest and hoped for the best. We had a clear vision and were glad that it was received well.

What are the major challenges to get your idea off the ground in a way that it changes people’s lives?

The next steps for us are research and development. We plan to continue research in Australia and hope to begin research overseas as well. 

Have you thought about how and where to spend your prize money?

We will be spending all our prize money on the development of Eyenaemia. In the near future, it will be spent on research as this is the next phase for the development of our app.

Did you get to meet Bill Gates?

We haven’t met with Gates yet. He is (such an) inspirational figure to both of us and we are very much looking forward to seeing him.

Eyenaemia is something that is after your heart, but would you want to pitch something else next year?

We plan to focus on Eyenaemia and hope that we can develop it further. We plan to release Eyenaemia on the app store in Australia within the next six months to a year. 

What is the most cherished memory you will take from Seattle?

Jennifer: The World Championships final will always be memorable for me. Having the opportunity to share our vision with the three judges was a great experience.

Jarrel: I really enjoyed meeting the members of other teams and sharing ideas.