Elly Savatia, 25, is a Kenyan inventor and social entrepreneur who won the prestigious 2025 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, awarded by the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering.
He received a £50,000 (approximately KSh8.6 million) grant for his AI-powered app, Terp 360, which translates speech into sign language using lifelike 3D avatars.
Described by Savatia as “Google Translate for sign language,” Terp 360 enables seamless communication between deaf and hearing individuals without the need for human interpreters.
The innovation was selected as the top entry among four finalists across Africa, during a ceremony held in Dakar, Senegal, on October 16.
Elly Savatia developed the app after recognizing that deaf people in Kenya often struggle to access essential services, from healthcare to education and employment, due to a shortage of sign language interpreters and a general lack of awareness among the hearing population.
“Companies cannot afford interpreters, and they just don’t have the tools to effectively integrate deaf people,” Savatia explained.
“We see ourselves as an enabler; we can do sign language, but at scale.”
Built in collaboration with deaf and hard-of-hearing Kenyans, Terp 360 currently supports English and Swahili-to-Kenyan Sign Language translations, with more than 2,300 recorded signs captured using motion sensors.
The team has set up a motion capture studio in Nairobi capable of recording up to 1,000 new words a day, as they work toward supporting Rwandan, Ugandan, South African, British, and American sign languages by mid-2027.
Early Life and Passion for Innovation of Elly Savatia
Elly Savatia was born in 2000, exhibited a natural curiosity for technology from a very young age.
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Growing up in Western Kenya, he was known for dismantling radios, clocks, and other devices just to understand their inner workings.
By age 12, Elly had already designed several inventions, including a windmill that could track wind direction and, at 13, a robotic staircase that could flatten into a ramp for wheelchair users, inspired by witnessing a classmate face a mobility challenge.
In high school, he also invented The Stair Ramp, a robotic assistive device for wheelchair users.
Elly won the first Kenyan Drone Business Competition in 2022, receiving training sponsored by the US Embassy.
Elly has received many prestigious awards, including being a 2024 Mandela Washington Fellow, a Presidential Innovation Award winner, a Commonwealth Secretary-General’s Award for Innovation, and a UNICEF Generation Unlimited Innovation Challenge winner.
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His innate drive led him to participate actively in hackathons, innovation challenges, and experiential learning opportunities rather than relying solely on traditional education.
Career and Impact in Assistive Technology
Elly co-founded and currently leads Signvrse, a startup he founded in 2023.
The company focuses on assistive technology using AI to bridge communication barriers between the hearing and Deaf communities.
Signvrse’s flagship product, Terp 360, is an AI-powered app that translates speech and text into Kenyan Sign Language using expressive 3D avatars, enabling deaf individuals to engage effectively across educational, healthcare, and employment settings.
Additionally, Elly also founded Innovate 4 SDGs, a nonprofit that trains youth on sustainable development goals and fosters technological innovation for social good.
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