SANTA CLARA -- Last December, seventh-grader Shubham Banerjee asked his parents how blind people read.
A Silicon Valley tech professional, dad Neil Banerjee told his son to "Google it."
So Shubham did, and with a few Internet searches he learned about Braille, the tactile writing system used by the blind, and Braille printers, which, to the 12-year-old's shock, cost thousands of dollars. One school science fair victory, a few national accolades, $35,000 of his parents' savings and a visit to the White House later, Shubham today is the founder of Palo Alto startup Braigo Labs, which aims to become the first purveyor of low-cost, compact Braille printers.
Image: Shubham Banerjee assembles the Braille printer he built out of Legos in his San Jose, Calif., Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014. (Patrick Tehan/Staff)
