This 11-year-old built an AI smart cane for ₹10,000 and took it to the UN

On 25 September, inside the UN Conference Centre in Bangkok, 11-year-old Aaradhya Jain introduced her creation "STAMBHA" to the world. The cane, literally translated as "the pillar," was a result of her own design, wiring, and programming. After her presentation, she found herself explaining her invention to a WHO regional adviser and Hungary's Ambassador to Thailand.

The idea for STAMBHA was sparked by two sources: an 11-year-old's realization that adults often neglect the elderly and a biopic of visually impaired industrialist Srikanth Bolla. Aaradhya wanted to understand what it feels like to navigate the world without sight and started by experiencing it herself. She realized that most smart canes focused on outward detection, but her invention also looked inward, monitoring the user's health and safety.

STAMBHA is equipped with a laser rangefinder, a camera that describes the surroundings and reads signs aloud, and sensors that track the user's pulse, blood oxygen levels, and balance. The cane can be controlled using Hindi or English voice commands and alerts family members if the user needs assistance. Most importantly, STAMBHA can differentiate between a stumble and a fall, preventing unnecessary panic.

Aaradhya built the prototype with her father and uncle, using AI programming tools to handle most of the code. She conducted extensive testing with her immediate family, gathering over 22,600 sensor records, 8,500 obstacle records, and nearly 20,000 balance records in just 16 sessions. Despite being a working prototype, STAMBHA remains a non-medical device, focusing on assisting those who need it most.

India is rapidly aging, with over 149 million people over 60 today, expected to reach 347 million by 2050. Many of these elderly individuals live alone or far away from their children, making assistive technology crucial. Comparable smart canes abroad cost around ₹80,000, while STAMBHA's parts cost about ₹10,000, making it significantly more affordable.

Despite its success, Aaradhya's ultimate goal is to reach the right people, and she plans to refine STAMBHA based on the feedback of real elderly and visually impaired users.