Youth Incubator Program

Helping young app creators turn promising prototypes into products with real-world impact.

Co-hosted by Braze and appinventor.org

Group of young students at a science fair presenting research posters, with one girl smiling and talking to a boy.
A science conference or academic poster presentation event with multiple research posters displayed on boards, surrounded by attendees, including students and adults, engaging in discussions and viewing research work.
Four young individuals standing next to a research poster titled 'Kidney Buddy: An AI-Powered Mobile Health Assistant for Chronic Kidney Disease Self-Management'. They are smiling and wearing conference badges, in a well-lit room near a window.
A group of young people engaged in conversation at an indoor event, with some holding papers and wearing badges.
Four girls wearing matching blue t-shirts with a mountain and stars design, standing in front of research posters at a conference, smiling at the camera.
Group of young students smiling at a science or research conference, standing in front of colorful research posters.

Launched in 2026, the Youth Incubator Program helps young innovators take their projects beyond the competition stage. Building on the Global Appathon and Regional Appathons, the program provides mentorship, technical guidance, and entrepreneurial training to help youth teams transform their ideas into apps that address real challenges in their communities.

From prototype to product

Over six months, participants work with the App Inventor team and industry mentors to develop their apps and strengthen their product development and business skills.

The program's curriculum cover design thinking, ethics, data privacy and security, user experience and accessibility, market research, user testing, and business planning. Participants explore the steps involved in preparing their apps for publication on the Google Play Store, gaining practical experience in bringing technology products to market.

Sharing ideas at MIT

A highlight of the pilot was the 2026 MIT App Inventor Global Education Summit in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where Youth Incubator Program participants presented their projects, connected with educators and technology professionals, and exchanged ideas with young innovators from around the world.

Through presentations, workshops, and discussions, participants gained feedback on their developing apps and fresh perspectives on the challenges their projects aim to address.

In their own words

Participants reflected on their experiences at the MIT App Inventor Global Education Summit:

“This experience really expanded my perspective by meeting so many people from different backgrounds, and that takeaway made it all worth attending.”

“Most importantly, the feedback, discussions, and collaborative environment inspired our team to continue improving our app throughout the rest of the program and beyond.”

“…we also learned about issues all over the world and what people have been doing on a community scale to reduce those problems.”

Looking ahead

Building on a successful pilot year, the Youth Incubator Program aims to expand opportunities for young app creators by refining its curriculum, engaging additional industry partners, supporting more teams, and broadening participation around the world.