# Danielle Boyer

Founder, The STEAM Connection. TIME100 AI 2026, Innovators. She turned down a reported $65 million from a big tech company for the AI she built to teach her endangered language. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/danielle-boyer/))

- Career: The STEAM Connection (Founder and CEO, 2019 to now) ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danielle_Boyer), [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielleboyerrr))
- TIME profile: https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/danielle-boyer/
- Profile: https://www.autumn.ai/resources/most-influential-people-in-ai/danielle-boyer

- Says a major tech company offered $65 million for her language AI and the recordings behind it; after consulting her community, she said no. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/danielle-boyer/))
- Designed her first robot at 17 and founded The STEAM Connection at 18, giving away robot kits made from recycled plastic. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danielle_Boyer))
- Her grandmother, the last fluent Anishinaabemowin speaker in their family, was the voice of the very first SkoBot. ([home.dartmouth.edu](https://home.dartmouth.edu/news/2026/10/danielle-boyer-champions-ethical-and-inclusive-innovation))
- The idea for the shoulder-riding SkoBot came to her in a toy store, inspired by Tickle Me Elmo. ([npr.org](https://www.npr.org/2026/07/26/nx-s1-5825798/robot-speaks-endangered-native-american-languages))
- Has put 350 SkoBots into Tribal schools and Indigenous youth programs since 2021, all free, reaching more than 10,000 children. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/danielle-boyer/))
- Says a popular chatbot invented an Anishinaabemowin word for dreamcatcher's weave, which is why her robots use no large language model. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/danielle-boyer/))