Marietta high school student designs AI software to streamline employee scheduling
A Marietta teenager has turned a sports injury into a purpose.
Pope High School senior Noah Marbach played competitive soccer for about a decade and loved the competition, but an injury forced him to hang up his cleats.
"I just kept getting injured to the point where I just couldn't play competitively anymore, ankle injuries. I kept getting recurring ankle injuries on my left ankle," Marbach said.
He had free time, so he started working on X Shift AI, an artificial intelligence software he says helps businesses with scheduling.
"I was like, what's a way I can compete and make a difference in society? I realized that I worked a lot of shift-based jobs growing up. I saw a huge pain point in the industries where managers would be spending six plus hours a week building employee schedules manually," Marbach said.
Artificial intelligence is something Pope High School teacher Jeffrey Wheeler says Marbach is familiar with.
"He wouldn't always prioritize doing his homework the right way. He would often look for shortcuts, oftentimes with digital methods, which frankly lends itself to what he's doing now with the AI software," Wheeler said.
"I've definitely used AI to do my school work. I probably used AI more than myself to do school work," Marbach said.
"I like the kid side. It was also funny for me, too," Wheeler said.
Outside of school, Marbach is building his business.
"I've built, like, a next-generation employee scheduling software. Not because I'm the smartest kid, but because I understand these modern technologies. I'm constantly in meetings with organizations, partnerships, payroll companies, giving demos to potential clients," Marbach said.
Wheeler says he's not surprised by Marbach's skills.
"Noah's confidence and his ability to navigate adult conversations well has set him up effectively for the pathway he's on with his software," Wheeler said.
Marbach is moving from injury to high school entrepreneur.
"My goal is to eventually be the most widely used employee scheduling software app on the planet," Marbach said.
The teen plans to attend the University of Mississippi after graduation and major in entrepreneurship while growing his business.