The entries have been tallied, there were some incredible apps submitted, and Apple has profiled three of its “Distinguished Winners” of its 2024 Swift Student Challenge, their apps covering care, extreme sports, and breathing exercises.
The company launched its 2024 Swift Student Challenge in February and selected 350 winners from their entries in March. 50 of these winners were recognized as Distinguished Winners for outstanding submissions. The 350 winners took home prizes including AirPods Max, a certificate, and a free one-year membership to the developer program. The Distinguished Winners were also awarded an invitation to a three-day in-person experience at Apple Park, including tailored programming at WWDC.
Apple VP of Worldwide Developer Relations Susan Prescott offered the following comment:
“This year’s winning Swift Student Challenge submissions once again demonstrate the breadth and depth of what is possible when talented young people use coding to make their mark on the world. We’re also incredibly proud to welcome more outstanding student developers than ever before to Apple Park to connect with our teams and each other as they continue to build apps that will no doubt transform our future for the better.”
The first of the profiled winners featured Canadian student Elena Galluzzo, who used her time at home with her maternal grandparents to create the Care Capsule app.
“My grandmother is in the late stages of Alzheimer’s disease and requires full-time care,” explains Galluzzo. “It’s also hard on my grandfather because it can be quite lonely — even though he lives with his children and grandchildren, a lot of older people don’t.”
Galluzzo highlighted Canada’s aging population, and her Care Capsule app functions as an all-in-one assistant for elderly people, creating a chatbot to analyze interactions with the user for signs of depression. It also tracks medications and helps users remember positive memories.
After graduating with a business degree, Galluzzo plans to publish Care Capsule in the App Store.
Dezmond Blair, the second profiled winner, created an app called “MTB Extreme,” which offers users a 360-degree view of trails from the view of a mountain bike. Blair credited his family as inspiring him in his work and in pursuing his goals.
“They spent a lot of their life trying to make sure that I wouldn’t have to struggle the same way they did, and so that’s where my inspiration and my passion comes from,” he explained.
Finally, Jawaher Shaman developed a stutter when her grandfather passed away at the age of five. With help from her father, she overcame the issue and is now studying at the Apple Developer Academy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Shaman’s My Child app uses both stories and breathing exercises to help train the user to speak without stuttering.
“My father never made me feel different, and I hope my app will do the same for any child or young person who suffers from stuttering,” says Shaman. “I don’t want them to ever feel like stuttering is a hurdle they can’t overcome.”
Via AppleInsider and Apple