Unlike any 15-year-old, Sainath Manikandan’s thoughts revolve around the future of humanity, environmental protection, and sustainable development goals. This young champion is the recipient of numerous prestigious local and international titles, including Sony BBC Earth’s Young Earth Champion 2022.  

Sainath is aware that his achievements are not tranquil hurdles. He needed a strong companion to seize his dreams, and thus he joined hands with AI. He has been learning AI algorithms since he was nine years old. From the beginning, he tried aligning his work with the UN SDGs.  

“I strongly believe that the future generation has the power to create a better environment”, said Sainath in a conversation with INDIAai. 

Growing with AI 

The power of AI and Machine learning to transform humanity woke the researcher in him. His desire to learn drove him towards the World’s First Junior Data Science Program by Clevered.com. 

During his education, Sainath also participated in the Clevered’s in the Artificial Intelligence Internship Program at the University of Oxford. “Through this internship, I was provided hands-on experience to explore the world of AI and Data Science”, said Sainath.  

The internship program was his opportunity to explore the world of AI, meet like-minded professionals, and witness the real-world impact of the technology. He presented his innovations on a number of platforms, including Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge's Innovators Program, Dubai Maker’s Faire, Abu Dhabi Chamber's Future Entrepreneurs, and the Global Forum for Innovations in Agriculture (GIFA).

AI for fire detection 

“AI has enormous potential to grow in the domain of fire and safety alone”, says Sainath. With the help of Computer Vision, AI models process the images we provide as input data. It understands the input images in the form of a binary code. While functioning, if the program detects any mishaps, it will alert the concerned authorities, thereby aiding them in stopping the fire at an early stage. 

Sainath, who developed the AI Detection Security App, has taken an image-based approach. Developing the model included preparing the dataset and training and testing the model. The model could be deployed in the form of drones, cameras and CCTVs, which can be used for live surveillance purposes.  

This task is similar to that of object detection. Once the model has learned the features, it can successfully differentiate between fire and smoke. We can later use it for live detection”, says Sainath. 

Saving life 

Failure in fire safety has resulted in the loss of life. “Let it be any natural hazards, such as pollution, climate change, human beings should be alive to find the right solution”, says Sainath. His AI model is a step to improve safety precautions in public and private places. 

Sainath developed the model during the Oxford internship. Only one per cent of the total students got the opportunity to take part in the internship. “Even if you have the greatest ideas, people will not support you unless you learn how to communicate them effectively. Effective communication is one of the skills I mastered during the internship”, says Sainath speaking about his experience.  

Future with AI 

Sainath believes that AI has tremendous scope in maintaining security. For instance, it has already proved its strength in the area of cybersecurity.  

Sainath is already conducting coding classes for his schoolmates. He is optimistic that AI will be a part of his future.  

“AI is going to be an integral part of our future, no matter the career choice”, he added.