A team of secondary‑school pupils from Borno State has unveiled a home‑grown humanoid robot designed to teach children, especially in hard‑to‑reach and crisis‑affected areas of the northeast and Nigeria.
The prototype, named “Max Zulum” after Governor Babagana Umara Zulum, was displayed on Tuesday at the graduation ceremony of the “Empowering Ideas, Empowering Communities” Artificial Intelligence (AI) Bootcamp and Data‑Analytics Fellowship.
The showcase, held in Maiduguri, marked the culmination of a six‑month training programme funded by Maxzeeton Technology and supported by the Borno State Information and Communication Technology Development Agency (BICTDA).
The students, drawn from six schools across the state, received instruction in coding, robotics, AI, and data analytics before collaborating to build the teaching robot.
The Managing Director of Maxzeeton Technology said the robot was designed to guide learners step‑by‑step, especially when they are faced with difficult mathematical problems.
“After just six months of intensive training, our students have turned theory into a functional prototype that can support pupils both at home and in the classroom,” he said.
“The humanoid robots stand as a symbol of local technological advancement, self-reliance, and the growing potential of homegrown solutions in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics.
“As part of this landmark initiative, Maxzeeton Technology also officially onboarded 100 youths into the Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, and Robotics Fellowship Programme today.
“The programme is designed to equip university graduates and young people with globally relevant digital skills and prepare them for opportunities in the rapidly evolving technology-driven economy,” he added.
Engr Kabir Wanori, Executive Secretary of BICTDA, said the digital transformation agenda is about building talent that can create wealth and solve real‑world challenges.
“Max Zulum is the first of what we hope will be many locally‑crafted solutions, not just for education but for agriculture, health and industry.
Wanori said BICTDA would provide further training for the students and expose them to the international community to enable their innovations to gain wider recognition
One of the developers, Al-mustapha Kabir Matazu, explained that the “Max Zulum” stands about 1.2 metres tall, with a display screen embedded in its chest and a speaker‑microphone array for two‑way voice interaction.
He said powered by a custom AI engine, the robot can recognise tricky spoken questions and respond with verbal explanations.
“It displays step‑by‑step visual solutions on its screen, focusing on primary‑level maths and science topics and adapting pace according to the learner’s responses.
“During the demo, we asked the robot ‘How does it solve mathematical solutions?’ and it walked us through the entire process, highlighting each step on the screen,” the developer student explained.
He said the training moved from simple coding to full‑stack AI, and that progression made the robot possible.
“The robot is a practical answer to a pressing problem,” he said.
Another participant, Fatima Abdulrahman, who won the bootcamp’s innovation award, said the experience has opened her eyes to what technology can do for my community.
“I now see a future where I can build tools that keep our children learning, even when classrooms are unsafe,” she added
This is a proof that innovation can respond to the teacher shortage, as the Nigerian education sector is strained for years by insecurity, displacement and a chronic shortage of qualified teachers.
According to official state education data from the Federal Ministry of Education Annual School Census, the average learner-to-teacher ratio in Borno State is 46 students per teacher.
However, regional reports by international organizations like UNICEF have historically cited much higher peaks (up to 124 pupils per teacher) in remote or conflict-affected primary schools.
