While schools and colleges worldwide are concerned about the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI) tools by students for assignments and studies, a 17-year-old student of Indian origin turned this ban into her main advantage. When the administration of the famous Thomas Jefferson School in Washington, D.C., completely blocked AI tools such as ChatGPT and Claude, Navya was not upset but started using her own intellect.
As a result, Navya, who is currently in the 12th grade, became the founder of an AI startup called 'Raaha'. The platform of this company has over 1,000 active users and offers more than 20,000 job opportunities.
According to Fortune, the launch of the AI startup 'Raaha' stems from a deeply personal and family reason. Navya's mother has hearing problems. Navya noticed how difficult the job search process is for people with neurodivergence. Although companies publish job descriptions with numerous requirements, they rarely indicate what the actual work atmosphere is like.
To solve this problem, Navya developed a free platform that allows candidates with neurodivergence to understand whether a job suits them before applying. She wrote the algorithm for this herself.
According to the latest OECD data, due to excessive use of AI tools and decreased attention spans, the academic level of 15-year-olds worldwide has dropped 25% below the average level of 25-year-olds. However, Navya excelled in this race. She explains that when AI was disabled on the school Wi-Fi, she was initially angry. But this forced her to independently deal with issues related to exams and studies.
In her opinion, if AI is used without careful thought, it can mislead a person. When restrictions were lifted after school, she used her mind to create her startup. Today, Navya is the president of her school's AI club, but she absolutely does not use AI to prepare for lessons or exams at school.
Navya's father, Rohit Tutteja, is a cybersecurity expert, and her mother, Dipti Tutteja, previously held the position of Data Management Head at major companies like e-Trade and Vd Bank. This family, which moved from Delhi to America, instilled in their only daughter from the beginning the values of avoiding 'shortcuts'. Navya's father claims that he always taught her that nothing can be achieved by cheating, and that hard work is the only way.
'Besides Raaha', Navya created another tool called 'Legible', which simplifies the understanding of legal and medical documents for children with special needs. To implement this initiative, Navya contacted local senators and the US Department of Education. Navya believes that banning AI is not a solution to the problem; the true wisdom lies in proper regulation and studying its appropriate use.