Seventeen-year-old Bengaluru innovator Hridank Bhagath has transformed a childhood curiosity into conservation technology. His fascination with birds began when he was just nine, wandering through the gardens of Udaipur as he followed the call of an Indian peafowl.
Growing up listening to his grandmother’s tales of Garuda and Jatayu, and reading about Keats’ nightingales and Hardy’s thrushes, birds became an inseparable part of his imagination. But one day, he realised he was seeing more birds in books than in real life — a question that would eventually define his path: why are we losing them?
That question led to BirdRover, an AI-powered hovercraft designed to monitor bird populations without disturbing them. The radio-controlled system glides silently across lakes, equipped with high-resolution cameras and custom-built algorithms that identify and classify birds in real time.
Unlike traditional drones, which are noisy and capture top-down images unsuitable for accurate classification, BirdRover operates quietly at water level, capturing side-profile images ideal for species recognition.
BirdRover boosts bird monitoring in Karnataka
The onboard AI automatically stores data and photographs, helping researchers build extensive datasets that once required months of manual work. Developing BirdRover wasn’t easy, says Hridank, a 12th grader at The International School Bangalore (TISB) pursuing science.
He went through seven prototypes, facing challenges ranging from AI optimisation to waterproofing and stability. But every failure taught him more about balance, buoyancy and resilience.
Today, BirdRover is being deployed across Karnataka’s key water bodies, including the KRS backwaters, Tungabhadra River Tern Reservoir and Devarabeesanahalli Lake, where it’s helping researchers identify species like grey herons, cormorants and river terns.
In collaboration with Kuvempu University and the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), BirdRover is aiding PhD-level studies that use AI-generated datasets to analyze habitat suitability and understand environmental factors influencing bird populations.
The project has earned Hridank the IRIS Grand Award and a finalist spot at the Regeneron ISEF 2025. Recognized by Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre and Karnataka’s Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Meenakshi Negi, BirdRover has also opened conversations about integrating it across Karnataka’s lakes.
As Hridank works on developing a fully autonomous version of BirdRover and exploring underwater monitoring technologies, he hopes to inspire other young innovators to follow their own curiosities.
“Start with what truly fascinates you,” he says. “It’s that fascination that will carry you through every failure.”
