TAMPA – Chilok Mak, a sophomore at Berkeley Preparatory School, won the top prize in U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor’s (FL14) annual congressional app challenge with an entry designed to increase safety measures for swimmers.
Chilok used artificial intelligence to create RipGuard, an app that helps beachgoers identify rip currents in the water.
“Living in Tampa and regularly hanging out at local beaches like Clearwater and Fort DeSoto, my mother always warned me to watch out for rip currents,” Chilok said. “ I learned to spot them and watch out for myself, but I realized that many beachgoers don’t know what rip currents are or how to identify them.”
While some beaches have lifeguards, Chilok thought about the need to help people who may not know how to identify such hazards at unsupervised beaches.
“I started thinking about more efficient solutions and turned my attention to artificial intelligence and computer vision as potential tools to combat these threats,” he said. “What if every beachgoer had an AI-powered mobile app that could scan and identify rip currents, warning users and potentially saving lives? Thus, RipGuard was born.”
Chilok will be recognized at the U.S. Capitol for the House of Code celebration in the spring alongside other winners of congressional app competitions from throughout the country.
“Encouraging students to explore STEM fields through the app challenge is a great way to help younger generations learn about science and technology in a creative manner and spark their interest in the STEM workforce,” Castor said. “With the emerging integration of AI technologies in our everyday life, it is critical that our youth not only understand this technology, but can use it to positively impact our neighbors and our country.
“I’m grateful for Chilok’s dedication to science, technology and the wellbeing of his neighbors in the Tampa Bay area and look forward to him representing our community in the halls of the U.S. Capitol in the spring.”