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 has concluded there are no competition concerns for the region if the acquisition goes ahead, clearing it without conditions. The deal was notified to the […]
Gift Guide: 20+ STEM toy gift ideas for aspiring young builders
For this year’s STEM toy gift guide we’ve split out our recommendations by age for easier navigation.
Speechmatics pushes forward recognition of accented English
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 equally well. Speechmatics claims to have the most inclusive and accurate model out there, beating Amazon, Google and others when it comes to speech outside […]
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 calls. In previous years, Google Assistant learned to screen your calls and make your reservations by phone via a technology called Duplex. Last year, it […]
Speech recognition works for kids, and it’s about time
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 and profound way.
The cocktail party problem: Why voice tech isn’t truly useful yet
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 (though who knows about tomorrow’s) it’s valuable to sound American or British. While many undergo accent neutralization training, Sanas is a startup with another approach […]