Indian student wins Apple’s WWDC app-making challenge: What is it – Times of India

As part of its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple issues an app-creating challenge to students across the globe every year. In this contest, students have to create an original app playground using the Swift coding language. This year, Apple increased the number of winners from the 350 awarded in previous years to 375 so even more students could be included in the event and recognised for their skills.
Their app playgrounds represent more than 30 countries and regions and cover topics as varied as healthcare, sports, entertainment and the environment.But there is one thing all of the winners have in common, they using coding to share their passions with the world. For the first-time winner, 20-year-oldAsmi Jain from Indore, coding is an opportunity not only to forge a unique career path but also to help others along the way.
App designed by Asmi Jain
While at Medi-Caps University Jain found out her friend’s uncle had to undergo brain surgery. As a result, he was left with eye misalignment and facial paralysis. She sprung into action, designing her winning playground to track a user’s eye movements as they try to follow a ball moving around the screen.
The playground’s purpose is to help strengthen the eye muscles, and though it was inspired by her friend’s uncle, Jain hopes it can be used by people with a variety of eye conditions and injuries. Swift Student Challenge winner Jain also had a virtual meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook on ahead of WWDC23.
“At Apple, our mission is to help people everywhere pursue their passions and bring their best ideas to life. I had an amazing time meeting so many people from India’s innovative iOS developer community earlier this year, and Asmi’s incredible work exemplifies the creativity and ingenuity on display all across this country. She’s already poised to make a profound impact on the world by helping people with their health, and we’re excited to see what she does next,” Cook said.

Speaking about what inspired her to create the app playground for her uncle, the WWDC23 Swift Challenge winner Jain said, “It was important for me to create an app playground that could positively impact the lives of people like him. My next goal is to get feedback and make sure it’s effective and user-friendly, and then release it on the App Store. Ultimately, I want to expand it so that it helps strengthen all of the muscles in the face, and I hope it can one day serve as a therapy tool that people like my friend’s uncle can use at their own pace.”
Speaking about using coding to solve problems, Jain says – “When you feel as though you’re part of something bigger, it motivates you and drives you to do better. Coding lets me create things that help my friends and my community. And it gives me a sense of independence that is very empowering.”