Elly Savatia (born 2001) is a Kenyan entrepreneur and innovator, best known as the founder of the technology startup Signvrse and creator of Terp 360, an artificial intelligence-powered application that translates speech and text into sign language using 3D avatars.[2] In 2025, he won the Royal Academy of Engineering's Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation for his work on the project.
Career
Savatia founded the Nairobi-based startup Signvrse in the early 2020s for digital accessibility for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community across Africa.[3] At the age of 24, he launched Terp 360, which has been described as a "Google Translate for sign language."[4] The platform uses artificial intelligence and motion-captured data to render real-time sign language translations via photorealistic 3D avatars. According to Savatia, the AI is trained using motion sensors that capture a signer's hand movements and gestures in three-dimensional space.[7] The app was developed in collaboration with deaf Kenyans, recording over 2,300 signs, including common phrases and words in Kenyan Sign Language (KSL).[6] By mid-2025, Terp 360 reached over 2,000 users and was piloted in schools, hospitals, and workplaces to assist communication between deaf and hearing people.[1,8]
Recognition
In October 2025, Savatia was awarded the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation by the Royal Academy of Engineering in a ceremony held in Dakar, Senegal. He received £50,000 for winning the competition, which honours African entrepreneurs using engineering and technology to address local challenges.[9]