A Saskatoon entrepreneur is getting national attention for his new software that teaches robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and coding. Olaseni Cole is the brains behind Steminai, an adventure-based game that teaches kids and teens cognitive skills in the field of STEM. With more than a decade of experience in education technology and gamification, Cole saw a gap in the way kids were learning. “Before now, what I’ve been doing is the normal, conventional trainings,” said Cole. “Which is, having a computer, training to students to code in robotics. But I found out that there’s also a gap that has not really been met. That gap is we still have a lot of students out there that do not have access to STEM education.” And he found other programs too rigid. “Most platforms and resources out there do not personalize these experiences for these students,” said Cole. “We’re trying to make sure that the students have personalization. AI helps to personalize this for the students. If a student struggles for instance to answer some questions or write some lines of code, the AI helps students with more examples to help them understand those concepts better.” The idea for the game started during the pandemic. After years of research, Cole has been working tirelessly to get his game ready to launch on phones, tablets and computers. “Kids, they’re always on their tablets, on their phones, even on their computers,” he said. “So, this helps them not to just be consumers of technology, it helps them to leverage technology to actually build stuff, to be innovative, to actually be creators.” Cole entered into a pitch contest hosted by Black Entrepreneurs & Businesses of Canada. Out of a record number of entrants, Cole beat hundreds of other competitors for a chance to give a live pitch at the Black Business Summit in Vancouver last weekend. “It was competitive,” he said. “Three sets of judges at each stage, and we got to the final round.” While he didn’t win the $50,000 top prize, Cole says he got validation for his years of effort. “Really great exposure and getting to the final is really validation for us,” said Cole. “Especially because we are almost done with building, 80 per cent done. And based on the pitch, people already understand what we are trying to build. They already see the value and they see the need also.” Another benefit of the contest was the opportunity to network with other investors and businesses across the country. “Networks are actually key because if you want to scale, you want to get to other parts of Canada or other parts of the world, the networks are actually key,” he said. “You can’t be on an island, you have to have those networks.” Cole says Steminai should be ready for beta testing this summer. “Technology is really going at a fast pace, and we need to get the next generation to be prepared for what AI is going to be doing in the next 10 to 15 years.” He says the tech revolution is here, so learning the fundamentals are important for youth today regardless of their goals. “I believe that this is the time for the young children, young people, to really plug in and understand where they actually fit in this revolution.”
