Ahead of this year’s International Day of the Girl Child, Samsung Newsroom highlights the impact of these programs and spotlights young women forging meaningful careers in technology.

India: From Beginner to Hackathon Winner

Growing up in Bangalore, Vaishnavi Kambar had no exposure to coding and never imagined joining a hackathon. After developing her skills at SIC and gaining experience as an intern, she went on to win HackToFuture 3.0. How does someone go from knowing little about programming to claiming victory so quickly? For Kambar, the answer wasn’t a single breakthrough but steady support and collaboration at SIC. There, she advanced her technical abilities and gained the confidence to perform at a high level.

Early in the program, Kambar worried her mentor might grow frustrated with her questions. Instead, she found patience and guidance. She credits this empathy as the foundation that encouraged her to keep learning and to speak up when in doubt.

For Kambar, SIC was a turning point. She learned to present ideas, work in teams and solve problems under pressure — experiences that reshaped how she sees herself. Now, she urges other young women interested in technology or innovation to approach the journey with courage and an open mind.

“Just take the plunge, even if you feel like you don’t belong. I started with no coding knowledge and a biology background,” said Kambar. “At times I felt like an outsider, but I kept going, one step at a time. Each time I pushed through the fear, I grew stronger.”

Armenia: From Learner to Leader

In Armenia, Hasmik Kettsyan discovered SIC as a place to grow. Although she already had coding experience, she often felt isolated in tech settings as the only girl in the room. At SIC, encouragement and trust created an environment where she could apply coding theory to real-world problems — a key step in finding purpose in her work.

“Different perspectives lead to better solutions, and the field gets stronger when more people are involved,” said Kettsyan, now a tech professional who encourages more young women to enter the field. “Find people who support you and keep pushing yourself. Your ideas matter more than you might realize.”

Inspired by her time at SIC, Kettsyan is now paying it forward. Soon after completing the program, she organized a technology summer camp for younger students in her community and began writing a book on innovation that she hopes to publish. For her, inspiring others has become one of the most rewarding parts of the SIC experience — and it continues to drive her to give back.

China: Learning Through Challenge

Ziyun Xu, a recent graduate of New York University Shanghai, is headed to Yale University to pursue her dream of protecting the environment. As a high school freshman in 2019, she wasn’t sure how to begin research. That changed when she joined Samsung Solve for Tomorrow, where she quickly learned the rigors of the process and advanced rapidly as a young scientist.

At one point, Xu revised her project seven times in just three days — each requiring a complete rethink of her approach — while also reviewing 280 sources to strengthen her paper. The experience laid the foundation for more advanced work that later took her research beyond the lab.

In Guangxi, Xu and her teammates worked in the countryside to design better-ventilated cattle sheds for local families, improve silage feed and use fermented cow dung to raise earthworms. Although farmers were initially skeptical, they grew to appreciate the team’s efforts. “The owner of the cattle farm sincerely thanked us for everything we had done,” she recalled.

Xu credits Solve for Tomorrow as the stepping stone to her dream, providing girls an outlet to explore science while serving their communities. She has since carried that spirit forward — mentoring younger students and presenting her findings at global conferences. “Every girl should believe that an idea from her youth might change some corner of the world,” she said.

Germany: Expanding Opportunities for Girls in STEM Around the World

For girls interested in STEM careers worldwide, Solve for Tomorrow and SIC have built a legacy of empowerment and community impact. As a global leader in youth education, Samsung also runs initiatives such as Girls’DAI. At the April 2025 event hosted by Samsung Electronics Germany, 36 girls toured the Samsung Space at the company’s headquarters in Eschborn — exploring three levels of AI technology, experiencing Galaxy AI firsthand and learning about responsible and creative uses of AI.

“Our Girls’DAI has shown how much potential lies in the next generation — bold questions, creative ideas and an open view of technology. Anyone who wants to shape AI needs these perspectives,” said Katharina Strohmeier, Project Manager of Corporate Citizenship at Samsung Electronics Germany. “Girls bring these perspectives, and that makes the future smarter, fairer and more diverse.”

Whether by supporting girls to become accomplished researchers or by offering hands-on exposure to the latest technology, Samsung is committed to opening educational opportunities for the next generation worldwide.

Learn more about Samsung’s CSR initiatives in the links below.

Samsung Solve for Tomorrow is a global STEM competition that empowers students to develop creative, real-world solutions to community challenges while building skills, confidence and connections that prepare them to lead and inspire change.

Samsung Innovation Campus is a global education program that equips youth — including underrepresented groups — with advanced IT skills in areas like AI, big data and IoT, along with hands-on training and mentorship to pursue careers, startups and social impact in the digital era.

To celebrate International Day of the Girl Child, observed annually on October 11, Samsung Electronics is showcasing the remarkable achievements of young women who participated in Samsung Innovation Campus — the company’s global initiative to equip young students with 4IR knowledge and hands-on technical experience.

By pursuing research and work in STEM fields, these young women are breaking down societal barriers and showing how anyone can become leaders and innovators of tomorrow. Read on to learn more about these graduates and their inspiring stories.

USA: Amplifying the Voices of All

Impassioned by her interest in AI and robotics, Natia Lollie from Texas found herself motivated to enroll in Samsung Innovation Campus to take her knowledge and skills further. After completing the rigorous seven-month program, Lollie emerged with a greater understanding of neural networks and deep learning, recognizing their potential to revolutionize robotics as well as solve highly complex challenges.

As Samsung Innovation Campus provides students from all backgrounds the opportunity to learn and grow, Lollie explains how the program acts as a crucial step in the journey towards true inclusivity, diversity and gender visibility within tech. “Encouraging women to participate and discover their places in the development and governance of the AI industry will both reduce bias and ensure that there is a diversity of perspectives. It will also promote greater representation by amplifying all voices and making sure they’re heard,” Lollie said.

Leveraging the knowledge acquired from Samsung Innovation Campus, Lollie aspires to be a Computer Vision specialist in the future and is actively working towards this goal. “My initial goal when I set out to take the course was to find the intersection between AI, machine learning and robotics and I successfully accomplished this. With the knowledge I gained, I now have a better understanding of how to utilize these skills to achieve my dream,” she added.

INDIA: A Community of Women in STEM

Samsung Innovation Campus alumna Medapati Vijaya is currently an undergraduate student pursuing civil engineering at the Dr. Lankapalli Bullayya College of Engineering. As an avid math enthusiast, Vijaya found herself curious to learn more about the role math plays in AI and machine learning — leading her to enroll in Samsung Innovation Campus in 2022.

Vijaya’s experiences at Samsung Innovation Campus led to both academic and personal growth. “The field of STEM is traditionally male dominated. However, with the support of the Samsung Innovation Campus community and the program’s resources, I was able to connect with other like-minded women in STEM and succeed,” Vijaya explained.

Samsung Innovation Campus’ curriculum covered a variety of topics related to AI, including data analytics — which Vijaya had a personal interest in due to her aspiration to become a data analyst. The program also enabled Vijaya to strengthen her organizational and analytical thinking skills as it seamlessly bridged theoretical knowledge and practice, which she claims is essential within the tech industry.

“You may encounter some difficulties but don’t let this discourage you! Believe in your potential, embrace your curiosity and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Surrounding yourself with a supportive community, such as the one I experienced in Samsung Innovation Campus, can make all the difference,” Vijaya expressed.

Vijaya explained how the all-female educational environment had a profound effect on her confidence, as she was able to connect with her peers and step outside of her comfort zone. “My experience at Samsung Innovation Campus helped me develop my confidence in many ways,” said Vijaya.

SPAIN: A Path Forward for Women in Tech

Valencia natives Carmen Llopis and Daniela Georgieva both began their tech journeys at Samsung Innovation Campus in Spain — a unique program to boost women’s participation in the AI field through courses designed specifically for local universities.

Llopis, who attends the Polytechnic University of Valencia, was not initially interested in AI and other technologies. After enrolling in Samsung Innovation Campus, her perspective shifted dramatically and she discovered an interest she did not know she had. “AI is my newfound passion and it’s an exciting field to be involved in. I am now advancing my studies and actively engaging in the tech industry as a woman, and I hope young girls in Spain can be inspired to pursue their passions for technology,” said Llopis.

Originally a graphic design student, Georgieva gradually became interested in programming and decided to explore this curiosity. Despite her limited knowledge of AI, she was warmly welcomed into the AI training program at Samsung Innovation Campus. The program also actively encouraged women such as Georgieva to participate in the courses, nurturing their talents and allowing them to thrive.

Likewise, Samsung is committed to focus on raising women up through education. Stay tuned to Samsung Newsroom for more inspiring stories about how Samsung Innovation Campus is creating a new generation of diverse leaders in tech around the world.

A group of girls engaged in programs in Plan International, one of the world’s leading child rights organizations, helped develop the idea that the smartphone should suggest empowering and positive words which would help them reach their full potential and break down stereotype barriers. Together, Plan International Finland and Samsung Electronics Nordics developed Sheboard. The keyboard uses a predictive text input to suggest a more diverse language when talking about girls or women to bring out their full capabilities.

Together with the young women, the team crowdsourced 2,500 empowering words, using AI to scan and analyze texts from female-empowering blogs and publications. Leveraging this database, the keyboard will suggest words for you that is meant to make the user react to what they have originally written, and change that for the better if needed. For example, Sheboard’s predictive text input will offer words such as “bold” and “intelligent” if you type in “girls are.”

“We talk differently to children depending on their gender. We talk to boys about their abilities, and to girls about their bodies,” said Ann-Birgitte Albrechtsen, CEO, Plan International. “We often don’t even realize when the words we choose strengthen stereotypes. Sheboard uses technology to help us reflect on – and change – the way we talk to and about girls by challenging the harmful gender norms that hold girls back. We want girls to be able to realize their full potential in the new digital era and Sheboard is a great tool to help us do that.”

While Sheboard isn’t the full solution to gender stereotypes, it’s a way to start thinking and reacting to the way we talk to and about girls with the help of our smartphones. Sheboard is the voice that reminds girls of everything they are.

“Digitalization and technologies are for everyone and should support an equal and inclusive society,” says Elin Wallberg, Head of Corporate Citizenship & Partnerships, Samsung Electronics Nordics. “Sheboard is a good example of how stereotypes can be addressed and discussed in practice. I am proud that Samsung has been part of developing Sheboard and supports breaking down barriers that could hold individuals back from reaching their full potential.”

The next step for Sheboard is a teaching material for schools in Norway and Finland that’s aimed for school children aged 13-18. There are plans to expand this to the rest of the Nordics and world later. This material helps students become aware of the gender stereotypes related to girls and boys, and encourages students to discuss how gender affects for example career choices and the impact of digitalization on women’s and girls’ lives around the world.

“Sheboard is intended for everyone, since gender equality is achieved by encouraging new ways of thinking and working,” said Salla Kuuluvainen, Education Planner, Plan International. “The teaching materials discuss how gender stereotypes occur in everyday life, for example in children’s toys and media, and by creating new kinds of princess fairy tales.”

As the world celebrates the International Day of the Girl Child on October 11, Samsung Electronics continues to support gender equality through initiatives like Sheboard, Girls’ Day in Germany, employee volunteer programs, and various education programs around the world.

For more images and videos about Sheboard, visit: https://sheboard.com/en/media/.

^* Martens, Andy; Johns, Michael; Greenberg, Jeff; Schimelb, Jeff. 2006. Combating stereotype threat: The effect of self-affirmation on women’s intellectual performance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 42(2), 236-243. DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2005.04.010.

Kågesten, Anna; Gibbs, Susannah; Blum, Robert Wm; Moreau, Caroline; Chandra-Mouli, Venkatraman; Herbert, & Amin, Avni. 2016. Understanding Factors that Shape Gender Attitudes in Early Adolescence Globally: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review. Plos One. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157805

Bian, Lin; Leslie, Sarah-Jane & Cimpian, Andrei. 2017.  Gender stereotypes about intellectual ability emerge early and influence children’s interest. Science. Vol. 355, Issue 6323, 389-391. DOI: 10.1126/science.aah6524

^** Sheboard is available for free in English and Finnish on Google Play.