Teen girl turns study problem into AI app for busy parents, earns Rs 2.5 lakh in 3 days

A 13-year-old student in Shanghai has turned an everyday study problem into a paid AI product, generating 18,000 yuan (Rs 2.55lakh) from 90 orders in just three days. Zhu Shuhan, a Grade Two student at a junior secondary school, developed the app despite having no programming background and secured third place in a national AI product marketing competition held in Hangzhou from August 21 to 23, according to the SCMP.

The result was achieved through a competition that judged participants not by technical expertise but by how much revenue their AI-generated products earned during the three-day event. Shuhan’s sales placed her third among more than 50 participants, while she also received 5,000 yuan (Rs 70K) in prize money.

A student builds a digital study supervisor

Shuhan’s product, Zai Chang, translated as “On Site”, is designed to help parents keep track of how their children behave during study sessions.


The app allows a parent to upload a photograph of themselves, after which the system creates a virtual parent who appears on screen while the child studies. A camera monitors the session and, when the child starts using a mobile phone or leaves their seat, the virtual parent gives a voice reminder.

After the homework session ends, the application creates a “concentration report” based on the child’s study period.

Her own distractions led to the idea

The concept came from Shuhan’s personal experiences with studying, she said.

Her parents were often busy and did not have enough time to sit with her while she completed homework. Without someone around, she said, she sometimes found herself getting distracted and secretly using her phone.

“My parents were so busy that they did not have time to accompany me while I studied. I often found myself distracted and discreetly using my phone while doing homework,” she said.

Shuhan said she noticed that self-discipline was also a challenge for several classmates. That prompted her to think about creating a digital version of a parent who could stay present during study hours.

“Many of my classmates face similar challenges with self-discipline. I wanted to create a digital parent clone,” she said.

She had no coding background

Shuhan began using AI only last year and did not have formal programming experience when she started building the product.

Instead of writing the application from scratch herself, she described the idea to a large language model in her own words and used the generated code to put the concept together.

When she encountered technical problems, she consulted AI-powered programming tools for help. From the initial idea to the implementation of the app’s core functions, the project took her around three to four days.

Why she removed the ‘mother getting angry’ function

The original concept included a feature labelled “mother getting angry”, which was meant to alert parents when a child repeatedly became distracted.

Shuhan eventually took the feature out because she did not want the app to operate mainly through punishment or constant reporting.

“I dislike whistle-blowers. I want my app to be gentle and allow room for improvement for children,” she explained.

The project also changed her understanding of what AI can make possible for people without traditional technical skills.

“From this app development experience, I realised that as long as you have a good idea, AI can bring it to life,” she said.

Her younger brother is among the first users

Shuhan’s younger brother, a Primary One student, is already using the app.

She said the monitoring system has helped him become more disciplined while studying.

“After being monitored by this app, my brother studies more diligently,” she said.

Shuhan now wants to take the product beyond the competition and make it available to more users.

She said she would consider continuing development and offering the app at a lower price if more people were willing to pay for it.

“If many people are willing to pay for this app, I will continue developing it,” she said.

90 orders help her finish third

The 18,000 yuan(Rs 2.55 lakh) in sales came from 90 orders during the three-day competition. The event was designed around the commercial performance of AI-generated applications rather than technical assessments, allowing Shuhan’s product to compete on the basis of actual customer demand.

Her result earned her third place among more than 50 participants and a separate 5,000-yuan prize.

Online users praise her idea

Shuhan’s project also drew praise from online users, who highlighted both the originality of the idea and her ability to use AI to turn it into a working product.

“She is incredible with a creative idea and the ability to leverage AI,” one commenter wrote.

Another praised her understanding of what parents might want from such a product, saying, “What business acumen she has! Her app precisely meets parents’ demands.”

The project has given Shuhan an unusual early experience of taking an idea from a personal problem to an AI-built product that attracted paying users within days.