James Dyson Award awards S$50,700 to young inventors for innovations in sustainability and healthcare

Two young inventors have been named global winners of the 2025 James Dyson Award, each receiving S$50,700 for their designs that address urgent challenges in sustainability and healthcare.

Now in its 20th year, the international student design competition drew more than 2,100 entries from 28 countries and has supported over 400 inventions worldwide since its inception.

Polish Doctoral candidate Filip Budny from the Warsaw University of Technology won the Global Sustainability Award for WaterSense, an autonomous device that monitors water quality in real time.

WaterSense replaces traditional, manual water testing with automated monitoring, linked to an AI-powered platform. Although water bodies in Singapore are well maintained, more than 40% of the world’s bodies of water are severely polluted, with rivers and lakes being especially vulnerable as they are smaller and slow moving, making them more susceptible to agricultural runoff, sewage discharges, and industrial waste.

As compared to traditional devices, Budny’s device uses natural water currents to generate power and employs recyclable paper sensors that refresh daily. These qualities ensure that the devices are affordable, accurate, and able to deliver real-time results.

Additionally, data is transmitted through mobile networks to an online platform that analyses trends and can forecast pollution events up to 72 hours in advance. As all results are publicly available through a website, communities and local authorities will be able to detect any pollution early and quickly deal with their water ecosystems.

Italian designer Alessandra Galli, a graduate of Delft University of Technology, received the Global Medical Award for OnCue, a smart keyboard that helps people with Parkinson’s manage tremors and improve typing accuracy.

Parkinson’s is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in Singapore, with symptoms including tremors, freezing episodes and impaired motor control. OnCue attempts to address these by integrating signals into technology. OnCue is a smart keyboard and wristband set that uses use non-verbal and visual cues to help users maintain rhythm and ease muscle stiffness.

Each key press triggers gentle vibration, generating a rhythm to encourage a steady rhythm and to help users press keys better. If a user lingers on a key too long, the vibration increases in force, helping to guide the user along to the next key. AI-powered technology predicts the next letter and lights them up on the keyboard, providing a visual prompt for users to continue, reducing hesitancy.

Taking inspiration from gaming keyboards, Galli’s invention is also a split-keyboard with raised key edges to reduce typing errors. It was also designed to be customisable, for example, the intensity of vibrations can be adjusted, as can the lighting system.

“The James Dyson Award supports young inventors who think differently and tackle real-world problems head-on,” said James Dyson, Founder of Dyson. “Our 2025 winners, Filip and Alessandra, are a testament to that spirit — they address challenging health and environmental issues with practical, ingenious solutions. I hope that winning the Award will be a springboard for commercialising their world-beating inventions.”

For both winners, the recognition offers global visibility and, through that, a pathway to real-world implementation. As Dyson continues its commitment to nurturing young engineers, the 2025 winners demonstrate how thoughtful design and technology can turn complex human challenges into solvable, life-improving innovations.