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QE AI supremo Paarth Aggarwal is celebrating after his latest app won plaudits in a competition linked to the world’s top-ranked university.

His SafeEat smartphone scanner for elderly and visually impaired users was one of just seven out of 2,176 entries in the Global Appathon to receive ‘honourable mentions’ alongside the winners.

The competition, which drew entries from more than 140 countries and regions, required participants to link their apps to the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

Year 12 pupil Paarth, who has been invited to attend next month’s MIT App Inventor Global Education Summit at the MIT Stata Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has enjoyed a string of AI competition successes, including taking first prize for his age category among UK entrants in Intel’s AI Global Impact Festival in both 2024 and 2025.

QE’s Head of Technology, Bilaal Khan, said: “It is exciting to see our pupils at the forefront of technological development: my congratulations go to Paarth on another noteworthy achievement.”

SafeEat is an AI-powered food ingredient list scanner designed to help elderly and visually impaired users make informed food choices based on their personal allergies, intolerances, and dietary restrictions.

The app makes ingredient labels easier to understand, and helps users determine whether a product is safe to eat.

To build their apps, competition entrants had to use the MIT App Inventor – a free tool developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, currently ranked number one in the QS world university rankings.

Paarth submitted a three-minute video about the app, in which he not only explained what it could do, but also demonstrated it live to a potential user in a local supermarket.

His commendation certificate was signed by Professor Hal Abelson, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, and Dr Natalie Lao, Executive Director of the App Inventor Foundation.

Paarth said: “A single mistake on a food label can trigger a life-threatening allergic reaction, but technology has the power to change that. I am incredibly honoured that my app, SafeEat, won the honourable mention for accessibility.”

Sixth-former Devansh Jha has won first prize in his age group in Samsung’s Solve for Tomorrow technology competition.

His concept, The Green Cross, is a handheld medical device that scans wounds to monitor their healing. As well as featuring on national radio, Devansh’s winning idea will be showcased on the iconic Piccadilly Circus screens. His prizes include an exclusive London work experience placement from Samsung, and some of the technology giant’s own products.

Competing alongside him was fellow finalist Sparsh Shrivastava, of Year 8. Year 11’s Ishan Jakkulwar reached the semi-finals.

The competition challenges young people to create ‘tech for good’ – solutions that benefit society by addressing real-world issues.

Head of Technology Bilaal Khan said: “We are tremendously proud of Devansh. He was up against 1,000 other ideas and 2,184 fellow competitors, so this is a very considerable achievement.

“By so successfully harnessing technology for the public good, he is amply demonstrating at least three of the six priorities in our Boundless School Plan: he is future-ready, community-orientated and a leader of influence & valued collaborator.”

Devansh’s idea, The Green Cross, supports more accurate remote wound assessment, helping clinicians make better treatment decisions, while reducing the need for follow-up appointments. He was mentored by Samsung Product Manager Jordan Roberts.

For his entry, Sparsh was supported by his Brilliant Bob 10 team – Dhruv Srinath and Aadit Shukla, who, like him, are in Year 8.  His idea is called GrowGuard – an adaptive operating system that ‘grows’ with young people to help keep them safer online as they get older.

Just nine finalists pitched their ideas in the final at Samsung’s King’s Cross HQ. The event, which was managed by educational agency Hark, featured speakers including Mete Coban, Deputy Mayor of London for Environment and Energy, as well as Samsung UK’s President, Ben Yoon.

Speaking after he took the top prize in the 16–18 age category, Devansh said: “It was a really eye-opening experience – I got to talk to so many people about how I could design something to make their life better. I had no experience in med tech before, but, with the people around me, I really wanted to solve a problem that mattered. This experience reinforced something I’ve become increasingly passionate about: technology is most powerful when it’s used to solve real, human problems.

“I’ve learned how to present, how to sell an idea, and to put myself out there – things I hadn’t done before.

“My advice to anyone thinking of entering next year: just go for it. As long as you have a genuine passion for it, you are good enough. It’s a really fulfilling experience, and if it doesn’t work out, it’s okay – it’s a learning process.”

Ishan, with his Flux team, was one of 24 semi-finalists. He took part in a rapid prototyping workshop led by technology charity Tech She Can.

QE’s robotics competitors start the Summer Term fighting fit, with six teams qualifying for the Vex World Championships in the US later this month.

After battling it out at the national championships in Telford, three senior V5 teams won places at the ‘Worlds’ in St Louis, Missouri, with a further three making the grade in the junior IQ competition.

In a busy Spring Term for robotics, a Year 12 team also took their own trip across the Atlantic, travelling to Calgary, Canada, where they were the only team from outside North America among 81 teams competing at the Mecha Mayhem event.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “Qualification for the World Championships requires huge levels of preparation, skill, design flair and teamwork, so our teams deserve hearty congratulations: we wish them all the best in St Louis.”

The three qualifying senior teams all acquitted themselves well at Telford, with Team Nova taking an Innovate award and Rogue winning a Think award, while Zenith were fourth in the Skills competition and came fifth in their division.

Six VEX IQ teams from Years 8 and 9 travelled to the national championships, joining two days of competition with teams from all over the UK. Each team competed in 12 qualification matches, with the hope of gaining a spot in their division’s finals.

The competition involved frequent working in alliances with other teams. The QE competitors’ collaborative skills, resilience and problem-solving duly won them a clutch of awards.

Team Omega won the coveted overall Design Award and claimed their slot in Missouri.

The other Worlds places went to GearSquad and CircuitBreakers, whose clever solutions to the competition game devised for this year’s national championships won them both an Innovation Award.

In addition, there was a Think Award for Torque Titans – an independent team of QE pupils who had decided to compete in VEX outside of School – and an Amaze Award, with a place at the Worlds, for a mixed team comprising students from various schools, including QE.

Darsh Singh, of Year 8, said: “I found the Nationals an extremely joyful and unforgettable competition. We all made loads of friends and it was an experience like no other.”

This was a sentiment shared by Yaer 9’s Akshaj Mittal, who added: “VEX isn’t about just winning. It’s about teamwork, friendship, resilience and courage, and our team embodied just that…”

The Canada competition was attended by team HYBRID. In recent years, QE Year 12 teams, who are unable to go to the Worlds because of examination commitments in the Summer Term, have joined a series of special robotics events in North America.

At Mecha Mayhem, with HYBRID the only non-American team, its pit area rapidly became a favourite place for others to visit.

The team finished day 1 with a win in their practice match and one win and loss in their first two qualification matches. On day two, they ranked 42nd in a competitive field. Competing in the Skills competition on the final day, they came in 19th place out of 74, thus hitting their target of a top-20 finish.

They also found time to relax and explore a little. They enjoyed a thrilling game of NHL Ice Hockey, the final match for many players before the winter Olympic break, where the Calgary Flames upset the odds by beating the Edmonton Oilers 4-3. At Calgary Zoo, they saw native species including Canadian mountain goats, bison, musk oxen and wolves. They took a trip to the Calgary Tower, followed by a visit to an escape room where they not only beat the time limit but escaped only just short of the record time. They also enjoyed the Downtown Calgary district, with its picturesque Jack & Jean Leslie Riverwalk.

• Click on the thumbnails to view the images.

Three boys achieved perfect scores in a national computing skills competition – while dozens of QE pupils won prizes.

Two hundred and seven pupils entered the UK BEBRAS Challenge at QE – and well over half of them (123) reached the top 10% nationally, earning themselves Gold awards and qualifying  for the next round.

Head of Digital Teaching and Learning Michael Noonan said: “We recognise the importance of digital literacy and critical thinking – and this competition is very effective at developing both.

“My congratulations go to all our many prize-winners on a great performance, and especially to Year 8’s Ehan Islam & Robin Peng and Year 10’s Ryan Uppal: their perfect scores put them in joint-first place nationally, which is a tremendous achievement.

“The outcomes of our students have once again surpassed all national benchmarks and put us in a uniquely strong position; one of the highest achieving schools in the computing-based challenge. I offer my thanks to all staff in STEM subjects, where this type of logic is developed, as well as those who give of their time to run the many coding-based clubs throughout the School.”

Organised by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, the UK BEBRAS Challenge is open to young people aged 6–19. QE pupils entered in three age categories, namely Intermediate (Years 8 & 9); Seniors (Years 10 & 11); and Élites (Years 12 & 13). One hundred and five pupils entered in the Intermediate category, 72 in the Seniors, and 30 in the Élites.

The aim is to introduce computational thinking to young people. Computational thinking is defined as involving the thought processes and problem-solving methods used to develop algorithms; it includes skills such as: decomposition, pattern-recognition, abstraction, evaluation, generalisation, debugging, and logical reasoning.

While the Gold awards are given based on performance against the national results, the competition’s other awards depend on relative performance within a school. These are:

• Best in School prizes – awarded at QE to Ehan and Robin jointly, to Ryan, and to William Joanes, of Year 13
• Distinction prizes: awarded to the top 25% in each year group
• Merit prizes: awarded to the next 25%
• Participation certificates: awarded to the remaining 50%.

The QE cohort’s overall performance was so strong that not only did all the School’s Distinction and Merit prize-winners reach the national top 10% and receive Gold awards, but so also did some of those receiving Participation certificates. These boys have been invited to take part in the next round – the BEBRAS Coding Challenge – a 45-minute competition that will take place in March.

“It was a fun way to engage with computational thinking” said Artharv Sharma, of Year 8.

An after-school lecture by a national space journalist attracted huge interest from the boys.

Some 200 pupils packed into the Main Hall for the voluntary assembly by Peggy Hollinger, Space Industry Editor for the Financial Times.

She made a powerful case for the benefits of space travel and exploration, answering one boy’s question about what is gained from it with a single word – “Knowledge!” – before adding: “We don’t know what knowledge we will get. We don’t know what benefits we will get. But if we don’t try, we won’t get it.”

Assistant Head (Pupil Involvement) Crispin Bonham-Carter said: “Peggy Hollinger is wonderful, and it was fantastic to see how she captivated the audience.”

In a career at the FT spanning 38 years, she has previously held roles including International Business Editor and Paris Bureau Chief.

Her wide-ranging talk covered topics including journalism and the importance of space, both economically and militarily.

The event was organised by Year 12’s Vu-Lam Le-Nguyen and Keshav Aggarwal.

“She championed the important role played by journalism – and by the Financial Times in particular – stating that the FT’s job was to follow where the money goes and look at those who were moving it,” said Vu-Lam.

Her degree was in Mediaeval History, but that had not hampered her career: it was her drive to follow current affairs that led to her going into journalism.

In answer to one question from the floor about why the media feels more polarised than in the past, she blamed the pressure on organisations to seek audience engagement, before adding this warning: “If you only follow the clicks…and you only listen to people who tell you what you want to hear, then things will never change. You will go further and further into polarisation.”

Space is now a domain for warfare, she said, citing the USA, China and Russia as the main actors, and stated that Europe could be at risk of falling behind if it cannot reconcile continental with individual national goals. European countries should look for areas of expertise, just as Elon Musk’s SpaceX has found its expertise in low-Earth orbits, she suggested.

Asked to enlarge on the military uses of space, she spoke about the war in Ukraine, where space has been used not only for surveillance, but also to carry out cyber-attacks.

Another question asked: “Who gains from going to space?” In reply, she pointed to the huge return on investment available, with an £8 return recorded for every £2–3 invested in the UK space industry.

A senior teacher, a sixth-former, and QE as a whole all won awards in the International Computer Science Competition (ICSC).

Queen Elizabeth’s is one of only three schools worldwide to receive an Award for Excellence in the global competition, which this year drew more than 3,800 entrants from middle schools, high schools and universities.

The award is given to schools which had many outstanding pupils achieving high results, or which showed particular support for their pupils.

The School’s individual winners were Head of Digital Teaching & Learning Michael Noonan and Year 12’s Snehal Das.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “My congratulations go to both the winners of personal prizes and, of course, to all the boys who participated and put in such a superb collective effort. Such co-curricular events are a tremendous way for our boys to hone their computing skills and become future-ready Elizabethans, confident of their place in our fast-changing digital world.”

Mr Noonan was one of just eight educators worldwide, and the only one in Europe, to win a Teacher Impact Award.

Snehal, an avowed computer science enthusiast, won an Ambassador Award – the UK’s only such award – for the “excellent encouragement” he provided as an ambassador helping to organise the competition rounds.

“The ICSC competition was an exciting way to explore…computer science,” said Snehal. “It allowed me to put my computational thinking skills to the test, whilst also allowing me to broaden my knowledge by exploring various research articles.

“As an ambassador of the competition, I also had the pleasure of spreading awareness about the field of computer science to younger years.”

ICSC aims to stimulate logical thinking and deepen computer science knowledge. There are three age categories: junior, which is up to 16; youth, up to 19; and senior, which is for first-year university students and above.

All participants receive the same set of problems, but the passing criteria varied by age group.

QE’s individual success stories included bronze honours for Snehal and silver for Kavish Jayasekera, of Year 12, who said: “I feel proud of my silver: it meant I was in the top 2% of participants. The progression of the competition was very good, with a relatively easy qualification round, and subsequent rounds building on the concepts and ideas learnt in the last rounds. There was not a lot of preparation required for the first two rounds, as they were less time-pressured and I could look up specific concepts as needed, but I did go through some helpful functions in Python before the final round, as it helped when answering the timed programming questions.”

Rishabh Datta, of Year 10, said: “The problems in the pre-final round were difficult but not impossible, and I found it fun optimising code in unexpected ways. I was certainly happy with my 12 score – which was in the top 60% of the final-round participants – since I hadn’t ever officially studied computer science.”

Aaryan Prabhaker, also of Year 10, welcomed the competition as “a great opportunity outside of the curriculum…The three rounds became progressively difficult, and I loved how challenging it was through the variety of questions (coding, logic, research papers).”

It was, Year 11’s Kostiantyn Halushka agreed, a “splendid” competition: “Completing the final round questions in mere minutes was quite intense, but the adrenaline rush pushing me to keep working on the problems was fantastic.”

Vivaan Gupta relished the opportunity the competition gave him to learn more about computer science and would fully recommend it to others. “I took part since I enjoy coding,” he said.

Year 12 pupil Parv Gandhi, who, like Vivaan, was a final-round participant, added: “The ICSC was a great place where I could learn and really challenge myself!”

• Pictured above are Parv, Snehal, Kavish and Vivaan.