Brainee wins Rep. McLellan’s 2023 Congressional App Challenge in Virginia’s Fourth District
Rep. McClellan has named Agastyya Kala, an 11th grader at Appomattox Regional Governor’s School and Irra Kala as the winner of the 2023 Congressional App Challenge in Virginia’s Fourth District.
When asked what inspired the creation of Brainee, the students said, “Originally, we had been making plans to participate in the Congressional App Challenge for years, but our plans were kept on a hold. However, last summer, we stumbled upon the technology of BCI, or Brain-Computer Interface. It was an interesting new technology, and we were immediately interested; however, we soon realized that it could also be used greatly to help others in need, specifically those with mobility-related disabilities. Individuals who require the use of wheelchairs often find it to be a physically laborious task, or one that can provide no autonomy. The latter is especially true for those with degenerative diseases that require another person to help them push their wheelchair. However, if we created an assistive technology that could use only brain signals to facilitate wheelchair movement, these problems would remedied. Users would no longer have to do physical labor or rely on others; instead they could simply sit back, relax, and just use EEG and EMG data from their brain. This is exactly what we set out to do, using a new, groundbreaking, and interesting technology and combining it with robotics to greatly assist individuals in need.”
This year’s Challenge saw an unprecedented level of participation, with 374 Members of the House of Representatives hosting competitions, surpassing the previous record of 340. A remarkable 11,334 students from across the United States competed in this year’s Challenge, marking an impressive increase of nearly 1,000 participants compared to the previous record set in 2019. The enthusiasm and creativity these students display is a testament to the growing interest in technology and signal a bright future for American innovation. The surge of ingenuity continued with a whopping 3,645 original applications flooding in, nearly a thousand more than the previous year’s high. This remarkable growth showcases the exceptional talent and innovation within our nation’s youth.
The Congressional App Challenge is an official initiative of the U.S. House of Representatives, where Members of Congress host contests in their districts for middle school and high school students, encouraging them to learn to code and inspiring them to pursue careers in computer science. This resounding show of bipartisan support emphasizes the critical importance of STEM education in today’s rapidly evolving world. Each participating Member of Congress selects a winning app from their district, and each winning team is invited to showcase their winning app to Congress during our annual #HouseOfCode festival.