12-year-old wins $2,120 for a smartphone grip that becomes a breathing mask and she plans to donate prize to developing countries

If a fire broke out while you were sleeping in a hotel, what would be the first thing you would reach for? For many people, it would probably be their smartphone. That simple thought inspired 12-year-old Kim Ji-on, an elementary school student from Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province, to develop an unusual fire-safety invention: a smartphone grip that can unfold into an emergency breathing mask.

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Her invention won the Presidential Award, the highest honour at the 2026 Youth Invention Festival, beating entries submitted by older middle and high school students, reports The Korean Herald. She also plans to use the 3 million won ($2,120) prize money for something beyond herself. Kim intends to donate the money to help people in developing countries.


The festival was jointly held by the Korea Invention Promotion Association and the Ministry of Intellectual Property from July 30 to August 1, according to The Korea Herald.

A hotel fire sparked the idea

Kim’s idea began with a news report she watched two years ago about a hotel fire in Bucheon that killed seven people. What stayed with her was hearing that some trapped guests had made final phone calls to their families. Kim began wondering what could have helped people survive while they waited for rescuers to arrive.

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She later found a possible answer during a school visit to a local fire station. A firefighter explained to the students that smoke and toxic gases can incapacitate people before flames actually reach them. That made Kim think about a familiar object that is usually close at hand.

Her question was simple: Why not build protection against toxic fumes into a smartphone grip?

Why she chose a phone grip

Fire-safety advice often tells people to cover their nose and mouth with a wet towel when escaping a fire, but Kim saw a problem with that advice. Someone who wakes up suddenly to a fire may have only moments to react. Finding a towel, getting it wet and then using it for protection could take precious time. It was not a feasible option.

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A smartphone, on the other hand, is something many people keep beside them while sleeping.

"I thought that if we kept protective gear attached to a smartphone, something people carry with them all the time and even keep by their side while they sleep, more people could make it out safely in an emergency," she told a local news outlet.

How the emergency phone grip works

Kim worked with her teachers to develop the smartphone grip with two key filtering materials. It contains activated carbon fiber, which can absorb harmful gases, along with a nonwoven filter designed to trap fine particles. During a fire, the grip can be unfolded and placed over the nose and mouth.

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The invention is not intended to replace professional firefighting equipment or a certified gas mask. Instead, Kim sees it as a device that could offer people additional protection during the first moments of an emergency, when every second can matter.

"It may not protect you for as long as a real gas mask, but I think it can give you those crucial first one or two minutes to get out," Kim said.

Kim’s smartphone grip stood out because it connected an ordinary object with a potentially life-saving use.

Her idea started with a frightening question about what might happen during a hotel fire. It then evolved into an invention designed around something people already keep within arm’s reach — their phones.

For the 12-year-old inventor, the goal is straightforward: if a fire happens while someone is asleep, a device already sitting beside them could potentially give them a little more protection and, crucially, a little more time to escape.