A Palestinian teenager has used the constant cries of infant siblings, including twins, to develop an app, which she says can help mothers identify the reason their babies are crying.
15-year-old Layali Khatib, who lives on the outskirts of the West Bank’s Jenin, worked on a software program that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze the sound of infants’ cries and identify the cause of their crying, whether it is hunger, tiredness, pain or a wet diaper.
While preferring not to share the specific details of how her app works, Khatib says the process involves recording the sound of a child while crying, which is then analyzed through AI processes, resulting in a list of possible reasons and solutions for the tears.
“The ‘Motherhood Guide’ application is a smart application built using artificial intelligence techniques to understand the needs of the infant from the sound of his crying, and tells the mother the reason for her child’s crying and how to properly deal with her child,” Khatib said.
Khatib began developing the application, which she called “Motherhood Guide” in 2019. The young developer says her app works with 93 percent accuracy.
“Motherhood Guide” can be used for infants under 18 months and also gives caregivers tips and tricks on easing their child’s discomfort.
Khatib recalls having to overcome many obstacles along the way. She learned coding by following online classes, and used an open-sourced website to create the app.
After her hopes of refining her current app and spreading it worldwide – Khatib’s next goal is to develop an app that can diagnose Autism.
