Omar Salem

Driven by his love of aviation and 3D design, Omar first entered the Stripe Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition in 2016 with a design for a cargo-carrying stealth plane. When he returned in 2017 with a project focused on protecting jet engines from foreign objects such as birds and debris, he earned a Highly Commended award.

Omar went on to represent Ireland at the F1 in Schools World Finals (now STEM Racing) in Singapore, a competition where students design, build, and race miniature F1 cars, and manage the team’s business.

While studying aerospace engineering at Queen’s University Belfast, he took part in the youth accelerator Patch, where he cofounded Field of Vision. The company builds AI-powered handheld tablets that help visually impaired fans experience live sport through touch. Omar’s tablets were named as one of TIME magazine’s Best Inventions of 2022, and they’re already being used by fans watching the Six Nations Rugby in Dublin and the Australian Football League in Melbourne. 

Omar’s advice to Stripe YSTE participants? “Enjoy the social aspect of the exhibition. Meet other people and hang out with them. People go on to do very cool things that you might want to work on together in future.”

Follow Omar’s journey on LinkedIn.