What ACT does
The project was entered as "Aid Care Treat (ACT) — an app-timising emergency response." It is a medical assistance application built to support emergency intervention, and one of its central features is the sharing of precise geolocation coordinates so that medical services can reach a casualty faster.
The sisters spent the preceding year working with public and private stakeholders on the design rather than building it in isolation. That consultation is part of why the judges took it seriously: an emergency application is only useful if it fits the way ambulance services already work.
The verdict from the judges
Professor Joe Barry, who chaired the health and wellbeing judging group, said the app "has the potential to save lives and reduce recovery times" and could "make a real difference in helping citizens in an emergency situation." That is a strong claim for a school project, and it was made by the person who assessed it.
Ciara, the eldest sister, described the win in the register of a teenager who had just been handed a gold trophy: "absolutely incredible … the most phenomenal … life-changing and so surreal … we're absolutely thrilled."
The scale of the exhibition
The BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition is one of the largest events of its kind anywhere. The 2025 edition drew nearly 2,000 project submissions; 550 were displayed during the week-long event, and 170 won prizes across individual and group categories. Nearly half of Ireland's secondary schools took part.
It was the 25th year of BT Ireland's sponsorship. Projects are entered in technology, social and behavioural sciences, chemical, physical and mathematical sciences, biological and ecological sciences, and health and wellbeing. As overall winners the sisters received a gold trophy and a trip to the World Expo in Japan — a prize offered for the first time that year.
Not their first time
The 2025 win was the second year in a row that the Murphy sisters had been recognised at the exhibition; they had previously taken a runner-up group award. That progression is the ordinary route to the top prize in Irish school science, where teams often return with a refined version of a project rather than a new one.
Their school is Presentation Secondary School Tralee, in County Kerry. Laoise's age made the result unusual: the exhibition is open to secondary students, and a twelve-year-old sharing the overall prize sits at the youngest edge of the field.
What is documented — and what is not
Firm: the win, the date, the project name and purpose, the three sisters' ages, their school and county, the judge's assessment and the prize. All of it was reported from the ceremony in January 2025.
Open: whether ACT has been released publicly, adopted by any health service, or developed further since. Laoise Murphy is a child, and this page carries only what the press published about her — no address, no timetable, no family detail beyond the names of the sisters who shared the award with her.
Why the prize carries weight
Irish science students who win here do not vanish into anonymity. Overall winners represent Ireland at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists, and selected presenters are invited to the BT Young Scientist Business Bootcamp in March, which teaches entrepreneurship and the commercialisation of technology.
That pipeline is the reason the exhibition is treated as a national event rather than a school competition. Past winners have turned exhibition projects into registered companies, and the bootcamp exists precisely because enough of them try.
| Person | Country | Milestone | Age / Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rishi Shiv Prasanna | India | Winning the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar in 2023 at eight, for… | Age 0 |
| Cannan Huey-You | United States | Presenting research on a Milky Way gas cloud at the American Astronomical… | Age 11 |
| Laoise Murphy | Ireland | Three sisters from Kerry won Ireland's biggest science prize. The youngest | Age 13 |
| Ángela Olazarán Laureano | Mexico | An AI medical assistant built in Veracruz, designed to work where there is | Age 14 |
| Émer Hickey | Ireland | Co-winning the 2014 Google Science Fair grand prize | Age 16 |
What is documented — and what is not
✓ Documented
- Overall winners of the 2025 BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition with the ACT app (Silicon Republic, 10 January 2025)
- Laoise Murphy aged 12; sisters Ciara 17 and Saoirse 15; Presentation Secondary School Tralee
- Judge Prof Joe Barry's assessment that the app could save lives and reduce recovery times
? Unverified, disputed or wrong
- No public release, download or health-service adoption of ACT documented
- No technical detail of the app beyond the geolocation feature described
- No reporting found on the sisters' work after January 2025
Questions people ask about Laoise Murphy
How old is Laoise Murphy?
She was 12 when the BT Young Scientist result was announced in January 2025. No exact date of birth is published in these sources.
What is the ACT app?
Aid Care Treat, a medical assistance app designed to speed up emergency response, including by sharing precise geolocation coordinates with medical services.
Who did she win with?
Her sisters Ciara, 17, and Saoirse, 15. All three attend Presentation Secondary School Tralee in County Kerry.
What did they win?
The overall prize at the 2025 BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition: a gold trophy and a trip to the World Expo in Japan.
Is the app available to download?
No source in this record states that ACT has been publicly released or adopted by a health service.
Had they entered before?
Yes. The 2025 win was their second year of recognition; they had previously taken a runner-up group award.
How big is the BT Young Scientist exhibition?
Nearly 2,000 projects were submitted in 2025, 550 were displayed and 170 won prizes, with nearly half of Ireland's secondary schools taking part.
Is Laoise Murphy on Wikipedia?
No Wikipedia article was found. The contemporaneous reporting of the exhibition is the source used here.
Quick quiz: how well do you know Laoise’s story?
How old was Laoise Murphy when she shared the 2025 BT Young Scientist top prize?
What does the ACT app do?
Which school do the Murphy sisters attend?
Sources
- Kerry sisters win BTYSTE top prize for medical assistance app — Silicon Republic, 2025-01-10
Checked by the Geniuses.club editorial team. Ages are given as of September 2026.
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