A 10-year-old schoolgirl who designed a wearable device to help “all the disabled people in the world” pay is hoping her invention could one day be used at the Paralympic Games.
The schoolgirl from York, known only as Beatrice, won a competition run by Visa and landed the company’s first role as junior chief innovation officer after she designed a wearable headset with a built-in hearing aid, a screen that displays sign language and a voiceover.
The schoolgirl pitched her design at Visa’s offices in Paddington, London, in front of company chief executive Charlotte Hogg and Team GB Paralympic swimmer Ellie Challis, prompting Beatrice to also send a letter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC ) about her invention.
“The IOC and the IPC, they’re both really big committees and they hardly ever respond to letters. So it was really cool to know that they read my letter and liked my invention,” Beatrice told the PA news agency.
She hopes her invention can be widely used at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the future, as well as “being used for different music concerts like Taylor Swift and maybe for football matches”.
“I hope it helps them generate lots of new ideas to help improve the experience for fans watching the Olympics and Paralympics,” she said.
Beatrice, 10, created a portable accessible headset to help people with visual and hearing impairments (Visa)
Beatrice, one of 30 children who took part in Visa’s competition to design an intuitive way of making payments, described her surprise at winning: “It’s really nice to know that they liked my invention out of all the other.
“I thought about all the disabled people in the world, and I thought about how they might not be able to see or hear as well as me, and so I thought it would be cool to create a device that helps them do experience best for them and make it more accessible for all these disabled people.
“When you turn (the device) on, there’s a little robot that asks you how to play a sport and you can choose which sport you want to play.
“So for example if it was football and if you scored a goal then that would be your payment so you have to win the sport to go through to the matches.”
She hopes her invention will inspire others to “never give up” on their own creations.
“To everyone in the world who wants to make inventions and things, I tell them to keep going and never give up and always feel free to share their ideas because you never know what you might end up with become famous for your invention today,” she said.
Beatrice, 10, spent a day at Visa’s head office in Paddington to pitch her invention design (Visa)
Beatrice’s mother, Georgina – who did not want to use her last name – went with her daughter to Visa’s offices and said Beatrice was “brilliant” in answering all the panellist’s questions and “had an answer for everything”.
“It’s been really fun and nice to think that children’s ideas can be useful and can be developed into something really important in the future,” the education sector management consultant told the PA.
British Paralympian Challis, who worked with Beatrice on her invention, said her “creativity and passion for inclusivity is truly inspiring”.
Meanwhile, Mehret Habteab, head of product and solutions at Visa Europe, said: “Beatrice’s letter to the IOC and IPC is a testament to Generation Alpha’s new way of thinking.
“Their expectations are set to revolutionize economies, so it is critical for every business – from businesses to sports organizations – to develop innovations that meet these needs.
“One way we are doing this for the Paris 2024 Games is through technologies such as Visa Go, a new app for Visa cardholders visiting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, which enables them to access unique experiences with curated local businesses. Hold Visa athletes and engage in interactive add-ons.”