Speech Recognition
Ello aims to eradicate childhood illiteracy by leveraging artificial intelligence and child speech recognition technology. The startup announced today that it secured $15 million in Series A financing to help…
Amazon’s adding voice-powered gaming to big name games with Alexa Game Control
Amazon announced the launch of Alexa Game Control, allowing gamers to play games by using their voice. “Dead Island 2” will be the first game to be compatible with Alexa…
Google launches a website version of its Read Along education app for children
Google has launched a website for its Read Along app for encouraging young children to practice reading. The website, which is introduced as a public beta, works with Chrome, Firefox…
Large-scale machine learning models are at the heart of headline-grabbing technologies like OpenAI’s DALL-E 2 and Google’s LaMDA. They’re impressive, to be sure, capable of generating images and text convincing…
Last week I wrote about an AI startup that’s building technology that can alter, in real time, the accent of someone’s speech. But what if the AI goal instead is…
We are in the early days of what it’s going to look like when we’re supported by ambient computing tools all the time.
When we last checked in with AI-powered captioning service Ava, they had just raised a seed round and it was six months into a pandemic that would reshape how we…
The European Union’s competition regulator has given the all-clear to Microsoft’s $19.7 billion purchase of transcription tech firm Nuance, which was announced earlier this year. The EU said today it…
The $19.7 billion acquisition of speech-to-text specialist Nuance by Microsoft, announced earlier this year, has attracted the attention of the U.K.’s active antitrust watchdog — which said today it’s taking…
For this year’s STEM toy gift guide we’ve split out our recommendations by age for easier navigation.
Google tests Project Relate, a voice recognition and synthesis app for people with speech impairments
Google is looking for help developing an Android app aimed at providing more communication options for people with speech impairments. Project Relate, as the effort and app is now called,…
Speech recognition has gone from convenient to crucial over the last few years as smart speakers and driving assist modes have taken off — but not everyone’s voice is recognized…
After already targeting verticals like hotels and apartment complexes, Amazon announced today it’s now rolling out new solutions for healthcare providers and senior living centers. The solutions, which are a…
Google makes calling businesses less painful with features for seeing wait times, phone tree options and more
Alongside today’s release of the new Pixel 6 smartphones, Google has again upgraded one of the device’s most basic — but often overlooked — functions: the ability to make phone…
Speech recognition holds tremendous promise for something desperately needed in the era of COVID-19: technology that can significantly improve reading outcomes and tackle the global literacy crisis in a real…
Our voice technologies have not been engineered to confront the messiness of the real world or the cacophony of our actual lives.
Sanas aims to convert one accent to another in real time for smoother customer service calls
In the customer service industry, your accent dictates many aspects of your job. It shouldn’t be the case that there’s a “better” or “worse” accent, but in today’s global economy…
Amazon introduces Reading Sidekick, a kids reading companion for Alexa, and Voice Profiles for Kids
Amazon today announced a new feature that will turn Alexa into a reading companion for children, as well as new support for Alexa Voice Profiles for Kids, which personalize the…
Featured Article
Apple’s iPadOS 15 breaks the app barrier
The announcement of new iPad software at this year’s WWDC conference had an abnormally large expectation hung on it. The iPad lineup, especially the larger iPad Pro, has kept up an impressively frantic pace of hardware innovation over the past few years. In that same time frame, the software of…
As far as AI systems have come in their ability to recognize what you’re saying and respond, they’re still very easily confused unless you speak carefully and literally. Google has…
Featured Article
The battle for voice recognition inside vehicles is heating up
Once a feature only for luxury vehicles, voice recognition has moved into the mainstream as manufacturers promise a seamless connection between vehicles, homes and personal devices.
While visual ‘no code‘ tools are helping businesses get more out of computing without the need for armies of in-house techies to configure software on behalf of other staff, access…
Microsoft launches ‘Group Transcribe,’ a transcription and translation app for in-person meetings
A new project from Microsoft’s in-house incubator, Microsoft Garage, introduces a different take on meeting transcriptions. While today there are a number of real-time transcription apps to use on your…
English learning app ELSA lands $15 million Series B for international growth and its B2B platform
Speaking is one of the hardest parts of learning a new language, especially if you don’t have someone to practice with regularly. ELSA is an app that helps by using…
Google today offered an update on the status of Duplex, its AI technology that uses natural conversations to get things done — like making restaurant reservations, booking appointments or updating…
Google today announced a number of improvements to its core search engine, with a strong focus on how the company is using AI to help its users. These include the…
South Korean startup Cochlear.ai raises $2 million Series A to detect the sounds missed by speech recognition
Sit quietly for a moment and pay attention to the different sounds around you. You might hear appliances beeping, cars honking, a dog barking, someone sneezing. These are all noises…
Dialpad, the business-centric voice, video and contact-center service, today announced that it has raised a $100 million Series E funding round led by OMERS Growth Equity. Andreessen Horowitz, Google Ventures,…
Millions of homes have voice-enabled devices, but when was the last time you heard a piece of synthesized speech longer than a handful of seconds? WellSaid Labs has pushed the…
Young “remote learners” often struggle to navigate the keyboards, menus, and interfaces required to make good on the promise of education technology.
