Indian-American Teen Among Apple’s Swift Student Challenge Winners

Abinaya Dinesh, a 15-year-old software enthusiast from New Jersey, made an app on digestive health.

(Photo Courtesy: Apple)

Fifteen-year-old Abinaya Dinesh is one among the winners of Apple's Swift Student Challenge 2021, which calls upon students who are interested in coding to present an original idea as part of the WWDC.

Dinesh made an application called Gastro, to make information about digestive health more accessible after she was diagnosed with pelvic floor disorder. She said in a press release by Apple that she returned from the doctor "not knowing what to do" to feel better and this led her to the create the app.

Dinesh’s app offers people with gastrointestinal disorders a way to access information and resources, especially because those types of conditions can sometimes be sensitive to talk about, according to the release.

A resident of New Jersey, Dinesh plans on either studying medicine or software technology after her high school graduation. She is passionate about the "intersection between medicine and technology", according to Apple.

Abinaya Dinesh is also credited with teaching kids the basics of coding, through an NGO she started by name of Impact AI. She has launched programs like Girls in AI to teach young women the basics of coding and machine learning, an India Times report said.