Nigeria, Aug. 22 -- A 20-year-old self-taught engineer in Kano has built a pair of AI-powered smart glasses that help visually impaired people move around without a cane or a human guide.

Khalifa Aminu began real-world testing of the device this week, fitting it on a blind volunteer to see how it performs outside the lab.

The glasses use cameras and sensors to scan the space ahead of the wearer. When the system detects an obstacle, such as a car, a building or another object in the person's path, it sounds an alarm and vibrates to warn the user, who can then move to a clear space and keep walking.

"It is an object detection system that detects obstacles and other things that could block a blind person's path, then gives an alarm and v...