Kororā Mode

Inspiration

Kororā Mode is inspired by the little penguin—small, observant —the Sentinel of the Sea.

The idea came from the need for better real-time awareness of our surroundings. Whether it’s wildlife, unexpected activity, or subtle environmental cues, people often overlook important signals around them.

Kororā Mode was designed to help users notice, understand, and respond to what’s happening around them in a simple and intuitive way.

What it does

• Detects nearby wildlife using geolocation • Provides AI-powered explanations and safety guidance • Displays real-time community-reported activity • Stores and retrieves data using a live backend (MongoDB) • Enables shared awareness across users

How we built it

Frontend: React (Vite), Tailwind CSS
Backend: Node.js, Express
Database: MongoDB Atlas
Deployment: Vercel (frontend), Render (backend)
API: iNaturalist (wildlife data), OpenRouter (AI guidance)

Challenges we ran into

• Integrating multiple APIs (wildlife + AI) • Handling real-time data flow between frontend and backend • Designing a clear UX between detection and community activity • Deploying a full-stack system under time constraints

Accomplishments that we're proud of

• Built and deployed a full-stack application • Created a real-time community awareness system • Successfully integrated AI guidance into the user experience • Designed a clean and intuitive UI under time pressure

What we learned

• Built and deployed a full-stack application • Created a real-time community awareness system • Successfully integrated AI guidance into the user experience • Designed a clean and intuitive UI under time pressure

What's next for Kororā Mode

• Add map-based visualization of activity • Improve risk classification and alerts • Enable media uploads for sightings • Expand detection accuracy and data sources

Built With

• express.js
• inaturalist-api
• mongodb
• node.js
• openrouter
• react
• render
• tailwind-css
• vercel
• vite