13-year-old Chinese girl earns Rs 2.2 lakh in 3 days with AI study app despite no coding skills

CHENNAI: A 13-year-old Chinese student with no programming background earned around Rs 2.2 lakh (18,000 yuan) in just three days by selling an AI-powered study companion app designed to help parents monitor their children's study habits, the South China Morning Post reported.

Zhu Shuhan, a Grade Two student at a junior secondary school in Shanghai, began using AI only last year.

She developed the app, called Zai Chang (On Site) for a national AI product marketing competition held in Hangzhou from August 21 to 23.

How did the student earn 18,000 yuan from her AI app?

Shuhan's app received 90 orders during the three-day competition, generating sales worth 18,000 yuan. She also won the third prize and a cash award of Rs 70,653 (5,000 yuan) after competing against more than 50 participants.

The competition did not have technical judges. Instead, participants were ranked based on the income generated by their AI-created apps during the three-day period.

How does the AI study app work?

The app allows a parent to upload a photo of themselves, after which the system takes on the role of a virtual parent to supervise a child while they do their homework.

If the camera detects that the child is using a mobile phone or has left their seat, the virtual parent displayed on the screen gives a voice reminder. Once the homework is completed, the app generates a “concentration report”.

Shuhan said the experience made her realise that a "good idea could be brought to life with AI."