3/3/2024 0 Comments Acapela text to speech voiceAssistiveWare brought its experience in working with people with speech-impairments though its BETT 2011 award-winning Proloquo2Go augmentative and alternative communication app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.įounded in 2000, AssistiveWare has established itself as the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X and iOS. Acapela Group brought decades of experience in building natural-sounding Text to Speech voices. Both companies share a strong dedication to the assistive technology market and were natural partners to tackle the challenges of developing children’s voices designed for people who cannot speak. The collaboration between Acapela Group and AssistiveWare dates back to 2003 when AssistiveWare was the first company to build a Mac product using the natural-sounding Acapela voices. This was one of the primary motivators for creating the child voices – to have a product that more accurately represents its users. We are excited that those phrases will finally resemble the child’s own voice.”Ībout 60% of the Proloquo2Go user base is 11-years-old or younger, yet prior to these new voices, children could only select adult voices or artificially emulated children’s voices. “Often, we hear that the cognitive and emotional skills of children are finally understood because prior to using Proloquo2Go, the child may have never been able to verbalize or express his or her thoughts. “We have already received positive feedback from children and their parents that the unique voice offering in Proloquo2Go makes a positive difference in how they communicate,” said David Niemeijer, founder and CEO of AssistiveWare. In addition to the new children’s voices, the new 2.0 version also includes enhanced customization tools, new research-based vocabularies, a total of seven new voices and an improved user-interface. ![]() Proloquo2Go already provides a voice to tens of thousands of users around the world. “With over 2,500 hours of research, recording, processing and development, the new children’s voices are a fulfilling result and a reflection of our longtime leadership in this field.” “This groundbreaking project is the first of its kind in the industry,” said Lars-Erik Larsson, CEO of Acapela Group. “It may be the very first time that families hear their own children speak with a child’s voice – you can’t put a price on that.” “These new voices will further transform the lives of children who cannot speak and the lives of those around them,” said Anna Reeves, National AAC Coordinator for England. ![]() After December 2012, these new voices will be available for licensing to other developers to utilize in their apps and communication devices, allowing even more children to access programs with voices that resemble their own. The voices are included in the Proloquo2Go App for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch through a new free update released today on the App Store. Users can select the authentic boy or girl as their preferred Text to Speech voice to speak a want, need or thought using symbol-based communication or typing with word-prediction. We look forward to accompanying our customers and partners in this new technology milestone”, says Remy Cadic, CEO of Acapela Group.The voices of British children Harry and Rosie were recorded by and for children. “Besides the Standard and Premium portfolio, Neural TTS technology strengthens voice marketing strategies by designing custom voices that will enhance brand identity, offer outstanding conversational user experience and increase customer satisfaction and confidence. We are talking about a new technology, capable of overcoming the limits of the quality reached with unit selection text to speech, that is widely used today. The quality of the neural digital voices relies on an invaluable asset which makes the difference: vocal databases rich with 20 years of voice portfolio development. It allows for the generation of realistic, lifelike voices that are highly engaging and encourage natural interactions for an advanced user experience. The system, based on Acapela’s Neural TTS (DNN and machine learning), learns quickly. The full Acapela’s digital voice portfolio will benefit from this technology breakthrough. Acapela Group, bespoke leading European expert of voice technology for the last 30 years, is unveiling its voices based on DNN (Deep Neural Networks).
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