There are different types of tests in the market to gauge a person’s IQ or aptitude. “In these tests, a person can tick the correct answer because they have some knowledge about it or it could also be by sheer luck,” said Nidhi, Founder and CEO, NEMA AI. NEMA AI is a health-edtech platform. It uses neuroscience and artificial intelligence (AI) to better understand the innate abilities of students. Based on the results, it recommends a customised curriculum to improve learning outcomes. “One wears the EEG headset and takes brain exercises. Here the questions of the test or if one has answered them correctly doesn’t matter. The aim is to understand if a person has the default ability to understand the complexity of a particular topic. If not, what can be done to help them reach there,” Nidhi said. The assessment also reflects what kind of a learner one is and what form of instructions are more suited to them. “A student becomes more comfortable, after it is figured out if we should communicate through video, textual, or other means. It is about understanding the student and applying a solution,” said Nidhi. The headset uses brain scan technology and is also designed to cater to neurodivergent students. “We capture brain patterns to identify individual strengths and weaknesses. The gaps are identified in terms of memory retention, thinking level, focus and stress levels, etc,” she said. During her college years, Nidhi realised not everyone can communicate their needs verbally. So she thought of this solution where one just takes up some exercises and helpful insights can be gained from them. In the process of creating the product, she also saw the functioning of an EEG based wheelchair, where a person just thinks and it moves accordingly. Nidhi was part of the 130 applicants at the Schaeffler India Limited’s annual initiative - the Social Innovator Fellowship Programme. This initiative, launched in association with Buddy4Study, is part of Schaeffler India's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities and aims to nurture and support ground-breaking social innovations that address critical challenges in society. Nidhi ranked second in the 10 winners selected this year. The first prize went to Karthickjothi M and Yograj Joshua K for their innovation - Talk Ally. It is a glove device designed to translate sign language into spoken language, facilitating communication for the deaf community. Third in line were Avinash Yadav and Arpit Kshirsagar, with their product Electica, a EV battery swapping service, enhancing the efficiency of electric vehicle charging. Other innovations included LiqSure by Dr Sarjerao Doltade, a novel approach to industrial wastewater treatment using cavitation principles. Agro Rangers by Siddhesh Sakore and Swapnali Dhawale is developed to work with farmers to improve soil health and implement agroforestry models.
