‘Don’t think out of box but remove it, says Balooshi
PRINCE OF INNOVATION At just 13, Emirati Adeeb Al Balooshi is known far and wide for his inventions and for embodying the spirit of innovation
HIS INVENTIONS • A heart monitor-connected seatbelt that can wirelessly beam health alerts to first responders • A camera-equipped firefighting helmet for use in emergencies • A waterproof ‘medical apparatus’ for his polio-affected father • A motorised ‘cleaning robot’ for his mother HIS FOLLOWERS • Popular on social media with 30,000 followers on Instagram • Met many of the UAE’s leaders, including His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai HIS AWARDS • Received numerous awards, including the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Distinguished Academic Performance • CNN’s monthly Vital Signs show, which named him one of the world’s most impressive young medical pioneers • Went on a world science tour in 2014 with the help of Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, which included visits to Nasa facilities in the US and robotics facilities in France
HIS PHILOSOPHY Why think outside the box? Just remove the box. That’s the correct way of thinking about innovation. Thinking of ways to help people.’
dubai — “I thought I’d try help the world. That’s what I did, and that’s what I’m doing,” says Adeeb Al Balooshi, widely known around the country as the UAE’s youngest, and perhaps most prolific, inventor.
Despite being barely 13 years old, Adeeb has numerous inventions under his belt, ranging from a heart-monitor connected seatbelt that can wirelessly beam health alerts to first responders, to a camera-equipped firefighting helmet for use in emergencies.
Word of his inventions have spread far and wide. He now boasts of over 30,000 followers on Instagram, and has been honoured at numerous events throughout the UAE and the world. He’s even met with His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Adeeb’s journey of innovation began, he says, with a desire to help his father.
“My dad loves swimming. He’s a victim of polio. His right leg didn’t grow as much as his other limbs, and he needed support to walk, with a medical apparatus,” Adeeb told Khaleej Times. “But we were at the beach one day, and he loves it and always gets in first.”
“I was waiting and he didn’t come, and then I realised it was because he was taking off his medical apparatus, which is like a really big sock but much thicker, with metal rods and some leather,” he added. “So I decided I wanted to make one that’s all-terrain, and waterproof.”
Adeeb’s final prototype, he says, “was much better”.
“I made it graphene, which is the strongest material on earth, but incredibly light,” he noted. “I gave it hydraulics. There is also no strap. That was never available before.”
Adeeb says he has a difficult time choosing his favourite inventions.
All for his mother
“I’m the worst at choosing between things. Just ask my parents,” he said. “But the ones I hold most dearly to my heart is the invention
I’m the worst at choosing between things. (I) just ask my parents. But the ones I hold most dearly to my heart is the invention for my dad, and one I made for my mother.” Adeeb Al Balooshi
for my dad, and one I made for my mother.”
For his mother, Adeeb built a cleaning robot.
“It’s not exactly a genius invention, but my mother never had free time. She was always cleaning and looking after us,” Adeeb said. “I thought I needed to do something.”
Using a toy car, some plastic, a battery container and a small broom, Adeeb produced the robot.
“When I added a vibrating motor to a small broom, it would vibrate the room and make it clean,” he said. “It would basically move and shake randomly, but you didn’t have to focus or control it. The thing is, it wouldn’t clean the sides of the couch, so I decided to use the feathers from a fluffy bird pen.
“She later realised that it had cleaned the couch in two minutes,” Adeeb added. “She hugged me.”
Adeeb — who is unusually motivated and modest for a youngster — says he believes that innovation exist to help people and his country.
“If God gives you talent, you use it in the best you can to help. But don’t show off,” he said. “Innovation isn’t saying you built something, or doing something sophisticated. Innovation isn’t creating, either. That’s inventing. Innovation is a way of thinking to make your country better.”
“Why think outside the box? Just remove the box. That’s the correct way of thinking about innovation. Thinking of ways to help people.”
bernd@khaleejtimes.com