BOSTON — Local teens are using AI to create a fully functioning app—in just two hours.
Four members from the South Boston Boys and Girls Club recently participated in an event hosted by Amazon Web Services to solve a real-world problem—and soon their app could offer a helping hand to parents and staff at Boys and Girls Clubs across the city.
13-year-old Joshua Moreta and 15-year-old Gabriel Hinson spend most of their afternoons at the South Boston Boys and Girls Club—a place where their parents know they are safe.
“They wanted me to be somewhere, not home, while they were working, so I wouldn’t just be home alone,” said Joshua Moreta.
But their parents don’t always know exactly what they do.
“Parents would want to know what their kid is doing at the club to also know that their money’s worth on what their kids are genuinely doing here,” said Gabriel Hinson.
Joshua, Gabriel and two other members recognized that problem at a Breaking Barriers Hackathon hosted by Amazon Web Services in the Seaport—and worked to come up with a solution.
“So we had, like, a whole system where you could see what the member was doing, like based on achievements, and it would recommend you different clubs to join, based on the clubs that you were already in,” said Moreta.
The team of four created an achievement tracker app where staff would check off the work members accomplished, parents could log into the app and see their child’s progress. It would then encourage members to add more goals as they see their achievements rack up. For members like Joshua and Gabriel, who have been using AI in their everyday lives, they were surprised at how quickly it helped them generate a brand-new app.
“How quickly, how efficient, and how even, like, how productive it was within even just, like, a short amount of time,” said Moreta.
“I feel like using AI will definitely make coding easier,” said Hinton. “It actually made me even more interested, seeing, like, the possibilities and, like, the future of, like, what else could be made.”
The Boys and Girls Club of Boston offers coding, AI and technology programs—but this exercise, the club’s chief impact officer says, was eye-opening.
“This is cutting edge, it’s a game changer, and we’re going to build upon that for our young people,” said Andrea Swain, the Chief Impact Officer for Boys and Girls Club of Boston.
By figuring out how to build code through prompts instead of doing it manually, Andrea Swain says the opportunity highlights the importance of exposing members to the latest technology and preparing them for the workforce.
“We have to invest in technology and our staff and in our young people so that they can meet the demands of an ever-changing job market,” said Swain.
What normally could take months of work was compressed into two hours. The teens were able to focus on high-level problem-solving—the same skill set they’ll need in school and in their careers.
“We want young people to utilize the technology, not be consumed or afraid,” said Swain.
“So we want to teach them how do they advance their work, not to replace them, but use it as a tool to help them solve problems and to learn.”
The app isn’t in use yet—but Swain says the goal is to make it available to staff, members and their parents in the future. She says this goes to show it’s vital for the Boys and Girls Club to keep up with technology because it’s rapidly evolving.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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