{"id":628430,"date":"2024-07-22T17:34:09","date_gmt":"2024-07-22T14:34:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/dutch-founder-raises-1m-for-app-he-built-for-his-deaf-parents\/"},"modified":"2024-07-22T17:34:09","modified_gmt":"2024-07-22T14:34:09","slug":"dutch-founder-raises-1m-for-app-he-built-for-his-deaf-parents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/dutch-founder-raises-1m-for-app-he-built-for-his-deaf-parents\/","title":{"rendered":"#Dutch founder raises $1M for app he built for his deaf parents"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a413ba64587c\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a413ba64587c\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/dutch-founder-raises-1m-for-app-he-built-for-his-deaf-parents\/#How_does_Speaksee_work\" >How does Speaksee work?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/dutch-founder-raises-1m-for-app-he-built-for-his-deaf-parents\/#Scaling_up\" >Scaling up<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div id=\"article-main-content\">\n                            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Growing up, Jari <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> was a full-time interpreter. Both of his parents are deaf, and from a young age he helped them communicate in a world largely oblivious to the struggles of the <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.who.int\/health-topics\/hearing-loss#tab=tab_1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">430 million people<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> suffering from disabling hearing loss.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhile my parents could lip-read, their hearing disability made group conversations almost impossible,\u201d <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> told TNW. Even family Christmas gatherings were a struggle.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That\u2019s what drove <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to found Speaksee: so people suffering from hearing loss could carry an interpreter in their pocket, everywhere they go.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1408687 size-full js-lazy\" alt=\"speaksee-deaf-app\" width=\"1080\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2024\/07\/speaksee-deaf-app.jpg\"\/><figcaption>Credit: Speaksee<\/figcaption><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1408687 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2024\/07\/speaksee-deaf-app.jpg\" alt=\"speaksee-deaf-app\" width=\"1080\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The young entrepreneur\u2019s initial goal was straightforward: he wanted to help his dad take part in work meetings. But all the speech-to-text software available was inadequate. Everything on the market was either too bulky, inaccurate, or impractical, says <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. His mum and dad agreed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"inarticle-wrapper channel-cta\">\n<div class=\"ica-text\">\n<p class=\"ica-text__title\">TNW Conference 2025 &#8211; Back to NDSM on June 19-20, 2025 &#8211; Save the date!<\/p>\n<p>As we wr<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ed up our incredible 2024 edition, we&#8217;re pleased to announce our return to Amsterdam NDSM in 2025. Registration now!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eventually, the Erasmus University graduate came up with an AI-powered speech-to-text software and microphone kit that he \u2014 and his parents \u2014 believed could do the trick. In 2017, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> teamed up with systems engineer Marcel van der Ven and founded Speaksee to bring it to market.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_does_Speaksee_work\"><\/span><b>How does Speaksee work?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaksee\u2019s microphone kit is specifically designed to create live subtitles of group conversations for people suffering from hearing loss. During an interaction, the user hands out individual microphones to the members of the group, who clip the small devices to their collar.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1408686 size-full js-lazy\" alt=\"speaksee microphone \" width=\"1640\" height=\"1069\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2024\/07\/Speaksee-microphone.jpg\"\/><figcaption>Credit: Speaksee<\/figcaption><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1408686 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2024\/07\/Speaksee-microphone.jpg\" alt=\"speaksee microphone \" width=\"1640\" height=\"1069\" srcset=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Each microphone is equipped with beam-forming <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a>, which isolates the speech from background noise, improving accuracy. The audio is then sent to a charging dock. This station doesn\u2019t just charge the microphones but also processes the audio and transmits to a smartphone app, where it appears as transcribed text.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All of this happens in real-time, allowing someone with hearing loss to read what\u2019s being said. Each member of the group is colour-coded in the app, so the reader knows who\u2019s saying what. The software also works with video conferencing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Speaksee app works in over 40 languages. The kit currently supports three microphones, but the company is working on expanding that to nine in order to support conversations with larger groups.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Scaling_up\"><\/span><b>Scaling up<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today, Speaksee announced it has secured <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1mn in fresh funding to scale up and tackle new markets. This brings its total raised so far to $4mn. The startup currently operates in the Netherlands but plans to branch out to the UK, Denmark, Switzerland, Norway, and Germany.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The hardest part about expansion, says <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, is securing government support. \u201cUnderstandably, people don\u2019t have to pay out of pocket for something like this,\u201d he said. \u201cThey expect it to be subsidised.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recently, the Dutch Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) approved Speaksee for reimbursement. This means that the government will cover the costs of the microphone kit for any employee in the Netherlands. The UK has also fully approved all Speaksee products for government funding through the Access to Work and Disabled Students Allowance funds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cGovernment support is a real <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>-changer,\u201d said the founder. \u201cIt makes this life-changing technology within reach of so many more people.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaksee is already used by several Dutch companies including KPN, Rabobank, and PwC. The Dutch government has also adopted the technology.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Back at home, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2019s parents use Speaksee everyday. His father says he wouldn\u2019t be able to function at work anymore without it. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Conversations around the table have changed for good.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cChristmas dinners have become demo day,\u201d laughed <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hazelebach<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u201cEach year we test out new features and the whole family gives their feedback.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis year they will try out the kit using nine microphones \u2014 I\u2019m looking forward to that.\u201d <\/span>\n                        <\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/dutch-founder-startup-speaksee-deaf-app\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Growing up, Jari Hazelebach was a full-time interpreter. Both of his parents are deaf, and from a young age he helped them communicate in a world largely oblivious to the struggles of the 430 million people suffering from disabling hearing loss.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhile my parents could lip-read, their hearing disability made group conversations almost impossible,\u201d Hazelebach&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":628431,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/tnw-blurple?filter_last=1&fit=1280%2C640&url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2024%2F07%2FJari-Hazelebach-founder-speaksee.jpg&signature=f9d8600b2fbcbbdcb90b192c87b0631d","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-628430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=628430"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628430\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/628431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=628430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=628430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=628430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}