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Growing up in Ekiti, Temitope Johnson didn’t have a traditional lab or workshop. But what he did have was curiosity.
It started with taking apart old radios and fans, trying to see what made them tick. What began as tinkering with household scraps slowly evolved into a deep interest in how electronics could be used to solve problems, especially in healthcare.
“I wanted to be a doctor at first,” he says, “but I found myself more drawn to how the tools doctors use actually work.” That curiosity stayed with him. It followed him through school, where he was known for fixing things most people had given up on, and through late nights spent watching tutorials on sensors, circuits, and microcontrollers.
Temitope’s journey took a more defined turn when he started to think seriously about the challenges people in his community faced. In many parts of Nigeria and Africa more broadly, life-saving medical tools are too expensive or simply unavailable. “I realized I didn’t need to wear a white coat to save lives,” he says. “I could build something that helps the people who do.”
That realization led to GoldenHue, a project Temitope co-founded to tackle neonatal jaundice, a condition that affects a significant number of newborns in sub-Saharan Africa. GoldenHue is developing a low-cost, open-source device that helps detect jaundice early by measuring bilirubin levels through the skin, using optical sensors and simple electronics. The device is being designed to work even in remote clinics where traditional tools are too costly or complex to maintain.
What sets GoldenHue apart is its focus on both affordability and real-world usability. The team works with clinicians, nurses, and engineers on the ground to make sure the device fits into existing workflows. It’s not just about innovation, but about creating something that actually works in the places that need it most.
For Temitope, the path from curious child to young inventor hasn’t been straight or easy, but it has always been clear. “I just want to build things that matter,” he says. And with GoldenHue, he’s doing just that, one baby at a time.
