At just seven years old, Angelina Tsuboi discovered her passion for innovation. It all began with a simple game she programmed in her Los Angeles public school's Grade 2class. Today , at18, the Grade 12 student's initial curiosity has evolved into a deep-seated desire to use technology to decode (解码) real-world problems.
In 2021, she co-developed Megaphone, one of her first apps, to tackle unanswered post-class questions and poor communication about events and announcements. Her problem-solving ability kept building from there.
When she took online CPR classes at the start of the pandemic, she figured it couldn't be just her who was struggling with the steps. So she created an app called CPR Buddy ― a winner in the 2022 Apple Swift Challenge ― which guides users through CPR using vibrations (震动) to regulate breath. After winning the award, Angelina presented her work to Apple CEO Tim Cook, a highlight in her young career, but one she didn't lose her cool over. "There's no point putting people on a pedestal (神坛)," she says.
The next year, Angelina built an app called Lilac, designed to assist nonEnglish-speaking single parents with resources for housing, job opportunities and translation support. She was inspired by her own experiences as a child of a single mother who immigrated to the US.
When Angelina decided to pursue pilot training at the age of 16, she was struck by how difficult it was to find financial support, which encouraged her to create yet another app, Pilot Fast Track, which helps those longing to be pilots find scholarships for flight training.
Looking to the future, besides applying to colleges with great labs, Angelina is exploring the field of aerospace cybersecurity and mechatronics ― combining computer science, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering.
"There's not enough optimism in the world," she says. "I have also been in situations in my life where I've lost a lot of hope. But in the end, it is a mindset, and there are ways in any situation you're in to make it somewhat better. "