Two computer science students from Stellenbosch University won €25 000 (about R355 000) for the WorkMode app they developed for Ericsson’s applications 2014 competition.
Rijnard van Tonder and Jacques Marais, both MSc students in Computer Science at SU, competed against 158 entries from 142 teams in the student category. They developed an app that helps workers collaborate by allowing them to see the real-time work context and tasks of colleagues. View a YouTube video of the app at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfUFVEmD-Pc&feature=youtu.be
In a media release, Ericsson says the jury was impressed by the strong business potential of the WorkMode app. Their focus on design and usability also helped when it came to innovation and addressing the theme of Apps for working life.
Rijnard, who is in the third week of an internship at Microsoft in Seattle in the USA, says he’s really honoured that they received first prize. “Africa as a whole also did great. I think this competition goes a long way to promote our potential here in South Africa and Africa.”
Earlier this year Rijnard earned second place in IBM’s Master the Mainframe contest, described as the largest competition of its kind in the world.
Jacques says this is only the beginning: “The award will help us to build our business and allow us to develop not only this app but also some ideas we have around education in South Africa. It will also enable us to purchase hardware so we can expand to different platforms. It’s a real boost.”
The winner in the company category was Team SOP from Nigeria, who created an app that analyses the availability of electricity in a given area. The Technology for Good Recognition also went to South Africa, with Sowertech’s Afta Robot app receiving the award for their smart solution for public transportation.
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