Elly Savatia has created something that many believed was impossible: an app called Terp 360 that translates speech into sign language in real time using photorealistic 3D avatars powered by artificial intelligence. The Kenyan entrepreneur won $67,000 and the prestigious Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation from the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering for developing technology that functions like Google Translate but for sign language. Deaf people across Kenya and Africa often struggle to access essential services like healthcare, education, and employment because human sign language interpreters are expensive and in desperately short supply.
Savatia worked directly with deaf and hard of hearing Kenyans to record over 2,300 signs using motion sensors attached to signers’ hands, capturing every precise movement needed for accurate communication. The app currently translates from English and Swahili into Kenyan Sign Language, with plans to support Rwandan, Ugandan, South African, British, and American sign languages by mid 2027. With a new motion capture studio in Nairobi capable of learning 1,000 words per day, Terp 360 is rapidly expanding to serve the more than 30 sign languages used across Africa. The judges praised Savatia for demonstrating that Africans can use cutting edge technology to solve problems not just on the continent but around the world, creating a solution that truly transforms lives.
