TIME100 AI honoree Danielle Boyer builds wearable robots to teach Ojibwe to kids
danielleboyerr · x · 2026-09-21
Danielle Boyer, a citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, made the 2026 TIME100 AI list and used her toast at the 3rd annual TIME100 AI Impact Dinner to ask the industry: "Progress for whom?"
She founded The STEAM Connection in 2019 as a teenager to bring free STEAM education and robotics to Indigenous kids. The nonprofit has reached over 1 million young people, distributed 25,000+ free robot kits, and runs a Make-A-Robot platform with 48,000 users.
Her best-known project, SkoBots, is a small wearable AI robot that teaches Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwemowin). It senses when a child picks it up, lights up, and speaks with prerecorded voices from the communities themselves. The shell features Anishinaabe woodland floral patterns, is 3D-printed in-house from recycled materials, and tribes can request custom designs.
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