SINGAPORE – Mapletree Investments (“Mapletree” or “the Group”) is pleased to announce the successful completion of the second edition of the “Mapletree x NP Hack”, which received enthusiastic participation from around 110 students in 27 teams across various IHLs. Supported by Mapletree, the expanded hackathon allowed the participants to be equipped with new, marketable, and future-ready career skills.

This hackathon gave students the opportunity to experience Design Thinking and workshops on pitching and visual storytelling to address social issues reflected in the challenge statements. An introduction to cloud computing exposed them to digitalisation and making use of tools to enhance their work. Students also went through stakeholder engagement sessions to understand their viewpoints, thus, developing empathy and understanding of the underlying business challenges on a deeper level.

The top five teams (Enspeech from Raffles Institution, Sight Revive from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, BPack from Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), MindHaven from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and Ikalgo from Temasek Polytechnic) impressed the judging panel in their five-minute pitches. Winning teams were awarded cash prizes of $3,000 (First Prize), $2,000 (Second Prize), $1,000 (Third Prize) and $500 (Fourth and Fifth Prizes), respectively. More information on the Challenge Statements and winning teams can be found in Additional Notes.

Mr Edmund Cheng, Chairman of Mapletree, shared, “We are proud to support the second edition of the Mapletree x NP Hack, as part of Mapletree’s efforts to bring engaging and meaningful programmes that will value-add to students’ educational journeys. We are heartened by the students’ increased participation in this hackathon, reflecting the committed desire of our youth today to share their bold, entrepreneurial ideas to address challenges faced by different segments of society.”

“In NP, we recognise the value of driving a strong culture of innovation. Over the years, we have spearheaded numerous initiatives including hackathons, where students acquire key skills and innovate by practising them on real-life challenges. After a successful inaugural run in 2021, the Mapletree x NP Hack 2023 was extended to students from all Institutes of Higher Learning. The strong support from participating institutes is a testament to the confidence in the programme’s ability to sharpen students’ analytical and problem-solving skills. Furthermore, by focussing on pressing social issues that Singapore faces today, this year’s event aims to prepare students to become competent and empathetic leaders of tomorrow,” said Mr Patrice Choong, Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s Senior Director for Technology, Innovation & Entrepreneurship.

First launched in 2021, the hackathon aims to provide students with new, marketable, and future-ready career skills. Open to students across different IHLs this year, the three-day hackathon took place from 22 to 24 March 2023 in a hybrid model of face-to-face and online workshops. In teams of three to five, students created solutions to one of the four challenge statements and submitted their deliverables for the semi-finals, which were evaluated by a judging panel.

Eight finalist teams were selected to pitch at the finale on 5 April 2023. The proposed solutions were evaluated based on the relevance to the target audience’s needs, business case as well as creativity and persuasiveness demonstrated by the teams’ presentation skills.

The event was organised by students from The Sandbox Advocates at NP. Facilitators for the Design Thinking workshops included 25 staff and students from NP.

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Photos
Available for download here: https://bit.ly/3KSGFyo   
Photo Credits: Mapletree Investments

Winning Teams

First Prize:

Enspeech (L-R): Kobayashi Tao, Putra Zayan Bin Mohd Jaffry; Amith Burla; Ms Joanna Lee; Mr Fred Then; Mr Jerrick Tee

Theme: Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)
How might we create a truly inclusive Singapore for persons with disabilities so that they live enriching and meaningful lives?

Realising that the hearing-impaired face challenges when it comes to employment, inclusion as well as education, a team of Year 2 students from Raffles Institution explored a solution which harnesses Text-To-Speech formation. With the help of a revolutionary AI-powered software called Enspeech, the hearing impaired can now be included in conversations with the hearing community through the use of Zoom integration, sentiment analysis and their unique voices, thus creating an immersive and seamless approach for them to be able to integrate with the society, giving a voice to the voiceless.

Second Prize:

Sight Revive (L-R): Law Jun Jie; John Wong Foong Wai; Pranav Vijitharan; Rajmohan Shivendra; Akul Arun; Ms Joanna Lee; Mr Fred Then; Mr Jerrick Tee

Theme: Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)
How might we create a truly inclusive Singapore for persons with disabilities so that they live enriching and meaningful lives?

To tackle the issue of vision impairment among PwDs who face limitations in being aware of their surroundings, the team of Year 1 Diploma in Data Science students from Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s School of InfoComm Technology came up with an innovative solution which uses everyday technology to become the eyes of the visually impaired. They built an AI model using Amazon Web Services, called Rekognition, to identify objects, texts, scenes and people. The AI model will aid the visually impaired person with features such as audio guidance, safety alert system and an amenity locator to help them gain greater independence and mobility.

Third Prize:

BPack (L-R): Isaac Ling Ser Jan; Nithinkaatesh Palanisamy; Raja Darshan; Tushar Gupta; Kieran James Boyd; Ms Joanna Lee; Mr Fred Then; Mr Jerrick Tee

Theme: Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)
How might we create a truly inclusive Singapore for persons with disabilities so that they live enriching and meaningful lives?

To tackle the social stigma of holding walking canes that the visually impaired face when they navigate public spaces and during commutes, the team of Year 2 students from Anglo Chinese School (Independent) proposed a solution which detects and discerns public transport options for the visually impaired through the use of infrared and ultrasonic sensors. Touted as the future of mobility aids, the BPack sensors are masked as a fanny pack and work through a mobile app which features voice commands, audio signalling and transport connection, empowering the visually impaired as they go about their day.

Fourth Prize:

MindHaven (L-R): Andrew Tai Shi Cheng; Ong Yun Jynelle; Alfred Ng Junwei; Ms Joanna Lee; Mr Fred Then; Mr Jerrick Tee

Theme: Youth
How might we develop and build the mental fortitude of youths so that they thrive in a world of constant change?

The team of final-year Diploma in Business Studies students from Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s School of Business & Accountancy designed a one-stop AI-driven mental wellness website to tackle the problem of youths harbouring mental health symptoms, through a personalised diagnosis using an AI Chatbot which is backed by professionals.  Coupling it with physical touchpoints, the omni-channel approach provides a unique experience for youths to develop their mental fortitude.

Fifth Prize:

Ikalgo (L-R): Dylan Ng Giap Hong; Cheryl Chua Xi Xuan; Shanmuga Nagappan; Daryn Lee Ying Ern; Quek Xin Hui; Ms Joanna Lee; Mr Fred Then; Mr Jerrick Tee

Theme: Youth
How might we develop and build the mental fortitude of youths so that they thrive in a world of constant change?

The team of Year 2 Diploma in Psychology Studies students from Temasek Polytechnic’s School of Humanities & Social Sciences proposed the idea of incorporating mental health & resilience-building resources into a Learning Management System (LMS). The LMS offers innovative features such as a study bot, customisable AI Avatar, and AI chat bot which provides a facilitative environment by encouraging motivational feedback and providing support in individual learning.

(L-R); Ms Tan Ching Ching, Director, The Sandbox, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Office, Ngee Ann Polytechnic; Mrs Pang-Eng Peck Hong, Director, School of Design & Environment, Ngee Ann Polytechnic; Ms Joanna Lee, Director, Retail Management Systems, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust Management Ltd; Mr Fred Then, Founder, Think Solutions; Mr Jerrick Tee, Assistant Director of Startup & International Ecosystem Development, Action Community for Entrepreneurship

(L-R); Mrs Pang-Eng Peck Hong, Director, School of Design & Environment, Ngee Ann Polytechnic; Mr Wan Kwong Weng, Group Chief Corporate Officer, Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd; Ms Tan Ching Ching, Director, The Sandbox, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Office, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

Semi-Final Judges

• Mr Edwin Tan
  Vice President, Asset Management, Singapore Investments, Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd

• Mr Fred Then
  Founder of Think Solutions

• Mr Matthias Yeo
  CEO of CyberXCenter

Final Judges

• Mr Fred Then
  Founder of Think Solutions

• Ms Joanna Lee
  Director, Retail Management Systems, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust Management Ltd

• Mr Jerrick Tee
  Assistant Director, Startup & International Ecosystem Development, Action     Community for Entrepreneurship (ACE)