What is the name of your organization?
Becalos
What is the name of your solution?
South SE Leapfrog: AI Entry
Provide a one-line summary or tagline for your solution.
A catalytic, accessible entry point into the digital economy for youth in Mexico's South–Southeast, focused on digital agency and AI-augmented work.
In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
Ciudad de México, CDMX, México
In what country is your solution team headquartered?
Mexico
What type of organization is your solution team?
Nonprofit
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
Young people in Mexico's South–Southeast (Oaxaca, Chiapas, Tabasco, Guerrero) face compounding barriers to digital participation. 73% work in the informal economy (INEGI 2024), with less than 12% accessing digital skills training. As AI becomes embedded across roles—not just tech—this exclusion will deepen regional inequality.
The problem is not lack of talent, but structural barriers:
The Accessibility Barrier: Most digital and AI programs assume prior coding exposure, English proficiency, or advanced technical education—effectively excluding the majority.
The Agency Gap: Even those with schooling often lack confidence and practical frameworks to experiment with AI tools as creative instruments, not just consumption devices. Self-taught learners exist (YouTube tutorials, free resources) but lack structured pathways to formalize and credential that knowledge.
Without intervention, young people remain locked in informality or forced migration, missing the opportunity to participate in an AI-augmented economy reshaping work nationwide.
What is your solution?
We deploy a catalytic AI literacy program designed as an accessible entry point into the digital economy, delivered through a proven alliance between Bécalos (600,000+ historical beneficiaries) and DEV.F (Certified B-Corp, Techstars & Google Accelerator alumni, Forbes 30 Under 30 Mexico).
Rather than replicating advanced bootcamps, this program is intentionally designed for early-stage inclusion:
Operational AI & Digital Fluency: Participants learn to use generative AI (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini), no-code automation (Make, Zapier, n8n), and digital productivity tools as practical instruments for problem-solving—without requiring prior technical training.
Digital Agency Through Hackathon Challenges: DEV.F's proven hackathon methodology cultivates high-agency skills—idea generation, resilience, rapid adaptation—by having learners experiment with AI tools on real local challenges (artisan cooperatives, tourism SMEs, family businesses).
Human-Centered Delivery at Scale: DEV.F's proprietary platforms (48,507 learner evaluations, 4.72/5.0 satisfaction) enable real-time engagement monitoring and proactive support—critical for sustaining participation in low-connectivity contexts.
This is not full reskilling. It is a designed catalyst that opens pathways where deeper specialization can follow.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
We serve youth aged 18–24 in Mexico's South–Southeast, particularly those with limited access to formal employment, high-performance hardware, or prior technical education.
Target Profile (informed by 513 South–Southeast scholarships, 2022–2023, a program that Bécalos and DEV.F launched with IDB Lab):
28% indigenous origin, 19% vulnerable/underrepresented groups
49% unemployed, 29% underemployed seeking specialization, 19% employed seeking career change
Common baseline: self-directed learning capacity (YouTube tutorials, free resources) but lacking structured pathways
Impact focuses on irreversible momentum, not immediate placement:
Lowering Entry Barriers: By prioritizing logic, creativity, and applied problem-solving over code, participants gain access without needing to become engineers.
Building Digital Agency: Learners develop confidence to experiment, iterate, and apply AI tools to real challenges—a transferable skill that persists as tools evolve.
Creating Economic On-Ramps: Graduates exit to choices: 40% continue advanced training, 25% apply skills to family businesses, 20% pursue formal education, 15% enter entry-level digital roles.
By 2023–24, we validated regional delivery capacity through 513 full scholarships, with testimonials revealing “fue el punto de partida” (“it was the starting point”)—a turning point in their relationship with technology.
