A young Castlebar robotics entrepreneur has really impressed the people over at Nissan.
Niall McCormick (22 ) is one of the co-founders of an award winning tech education company, called Colmac Robotics, which wants to help make Ireland a world leader in the field of robotics.
Nissan revealed this week that Mr McCormick is now in the running to become a Nissan Generation Next ambassador.
If he is successful, Mr McCormick will get a brand new taxed and insured Nissan to drive for a year.
The Nissan Generation Next programme aims to support ambitious people who "have what it takes to become tomorrow's leaders".
Hundreds of people applied to this year's programme but only 20, including Mr McCormick, have made it through to the public voting stage, out of which 10 ambassadors will be selected.
Mr McCormick founded Colmac Robotics with his former classmate Colmán Munnelly in 2013.
The pair previously represented Ireland and the UK in the international First Lego League robotics competition and now organise and judge the competition in Ireland.
Colmac Robotics delivers education to students around Ireland in the field of robotics in a bid to get young people excited about science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM ) subjects.
The business has grown to employ 10 people.
“We want to lead the charge in the robotics revolution," said Mr McCormick. "We are a small company with big ambitions and we want to be at the cutting edge of R&D, not just in Ireland but worldwide."
Mr McCormick asked the public to get behind his bid for a new Nissan by voting for him.
The six individuals with the largest number of votes will win a place on the Nissan Generation Next programme.
The judges at Nissan will also select a further four applicants who have impressed them most.
“My current car has cost me a fortune already and is unfortunately on its last legs," said Mr McCormick. “A Nissan would help me to achieve my goals by providing me with a reliable, economical way to get to and from meetings and workshops all over Ireland without fear of being stranded or held back by an unreliable car."
James McCarthy, CEO of Nissan Ireland, said Mr McCormick "exemplifies what Nissan Generation Next is all about".
"He co-founded Colmac Robotics before he graduated with a degree in electrical and electronic engineering at NUI Galway and is currently positioning it at the forefront of robotics development and education, nationally and internationally,” said Mr McCarthy.
“Niall’s ambition knows no bounds and his future goals include branching into robotics R&D, establishing an international centre for excellence for robotic design and a state of the art robotic testing facility in Ireland,” he added.
Those interested in voting for Niall McCormick can do so online by visiting www.nissangenerationnext.ie and casting their vote anytime up to July 6 2015.
