Silence Speaks
Silence Speaks is a UK-based AI company that converts text, voice, and video into sign language avatars in multiple sign languages (BSL, ASL, and others), serving enterprise and public-sector customers across transportation, healthcare, education, banking, retail, and digital accessibility through nine sector-specific products and a self-serve web widget.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2022
- HeadquartersDidcot, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Silence Speaks does
Silence Speaks is a UK-based, privately-held AI company that has built a sign language translation platform converting text, voice, and video into sign language through AI-generated avatars in photorealistic or animated styles. The platform supports British Sign Language (BSL), American Sign Language (ASL), and additional variants (Irish, Polish, Indian), trained on datasets covering regional dialects, contextual language, and emotional tone. The technology is delivered through nine sector-specific products (Transit Assist, Web Widget, Hospitality Assist, Retail Connect, Stream Sync, Live Sign, Class Connect, Care Connect, and Secure Sign) targeting transportation, digital accessibility, hospitality, retail, OTT/broadcasting, video conferencing, education, healthcare, and banking. The platform also offers customisable branded avatar characters and built-in captioning for users who do not sign.
The company operates a B2B enterprise model with quote-based, annual pricing and a "Request a Demo" sales motion, supplemented by a self-serve web widget for digital accessibility. Named commercial deployments include Transport for London (sign language avatars across 250+ stations and all Metro lines) and an unnamed greeting cards company using QR-coded signed video messages. The company is also partnering with Google and is a member of Nvidia Inception, with academic support from the University of Warwick, University of Bath, and Imperial College London. Funding to date includes a UK Government Innovate UK Smart Grant, with an additional investment round reportedly in preparation.
Silence Speaks is led by founder and CEO Pavan Madduru (former Vodafone AI pioneer), with CTO Adrian Pickering and Deaf COO Robert Tiffert (fluent in six sign languages). The board is chaired by Rt Hon Chloe Smith, former UK Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, who led the 2022 UK legislation recognising British Sign Language. The company is headquartered in London (167-169 Great Portland Street) with a registered office at Harwell Oxford, Didcot. It is GDPR-compliant and holds UK Startup Awards "Startup for Good" recognition along with Innovate UK backing and Tech Nation Top 25 placement.
Silence Speaks firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Silence Speaks
- Legal name
- Silence Speaks Ltd.
- Website
- https://silencespeaks.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2022
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Silence Speaks is a UK-based AI company that converts text, voice, and video into sign language avatars in multiple sign languages (BSL, ASL, and others), serving enterprise and public-sector customers across transportation, healthcare, education, banking, retail, and digital accessibility through nine sector-specific products and a self-serve web widget.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Silence Speaks industry classification
Industry- Product category
- AI Sign Language Translation
- NAICS
- Translation and Interpretation Services (541930)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Assistive Hearing & Communication Access (Captioning, Hearing Support, Transcription) (EDAFAKAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Multilingual/Translation Communication Apps (BPAMACAJ), Conversational AI Platforms (chat/voice bots, orchestration) (HDAAAFAC)
Keywords
Where Silence Speaks is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Didcot
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Silence Speaks business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- B2B Licensing (Sector-Specific Solutions): The company offers industry-specific solutions including Transit Assist for transportation, Hospitality Assist for hospitality, Retail Connect for retail, Stream Sync for OTT and broadcasting, Live Sign for video conferencing, Class Connect for education, Care Connect for healthcare, and Secure Sign for banking. These are licensed to enterprise customers.
- Web Widget Licensing: Web widget solution that organisations can embed on their websites for digital accessibility, potentially offered as a SaaS or licensing model.
- Custom Character Licensing: Organisations can license the technology to create their own signing avatar characters, including the ability to use branded characters like Spider-Man or Wonder Woman as sign interpreters.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Enterprise / Quote-based pricing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels9 records
Silence Speaks product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Silence Speaks builds an AI-powered sign language translation platform that converts text, voice, and video into British Sign Language (BSL), American Sign Language (ASL), and regional variants through AI-generated avatars in photorealistic or animated styles. The core platform is commercialised as nine sector-specific solutions — Transit Assist, Web Widget, Hospitality Assist, Retail Connect, Stream Sync, Live Sign, Class Connect, Care Connect, and Secure Sign — licensed to enterprise customers across transportation, hospitality, retail, OTT/broadcasting, video conferencing, education, healthcare, and banking. The offering includes built-in captioning, custom branded avatar characters, and a self-serve web widget for digital accessibility.
Product overview
Silence Speaks is an AI-powered sign language translation platform that converts text, voice, and video into sign language through AI avatars available in photorealistic synthetic or animated styles. The core platform powers multiple sector-specific solutions: Transit Assist (transportation), Web Widget (online accessibility), Hospitality Assist (hospitality), Retail Connect (retail), Stream Sync (OTT/broadcasting), Live Sign (video conferencing), Class Connect (education), Care Connect (healthcare), and Secure Sign (banking). The platform includes built-in captioning functionality for deaf users who prefer written text. Developed by and for the deaf community with deaf engineers playing central roles in design and development.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Transit Assist Transportation sector solution delivering instant sign language announcements and live travel updates through AI avatars, enabling deaf passengers to access real-time transit information independently at stations and on platforms.
- Web Widget Online accessibility solution that adds sign language support to any website in seconds, making digital experiences accessible for deaf and hard-of-hearing users on e-commerce, government, and other digital platforms.
- Hospitality Assist Hospitality sector solution providing instant sign language support to ensure every guest feels welcome and understood at hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues.
- Retail Connect Retail sector solution transforming in-store and online retail with real-time sign language translation, boosting engagement and satisfaction for deaf customers.
- Stream Sync OTT and broadcasting solution delivering content with real-time sign language overlays, ensuring equal access for deaf audiences from day one on streaming platforms.
- Live Sign Video conferencing solution providing real-time sign language avatars for seamless, inclusive communication in multilingual meetings.
- Class Connect Education sector solution transforming course materials, exams, and key information into sign language, empowering deaf and hard-of-hearing learners to engage fully.
- Care Connect Healthcare sector solution delivering clear, compassionate care with real-time sign language support from consultations to emergency instructions.
- Secure Sign Banking and financial services solution enabling inclusive banking with instant sign language interpretation at every customer touchpoint — online, in-branch, or at the ATM.
- Custom Character Avatar Licensing Licensed offering that enables organisations to create their own signing AI avatars — built from a single photograph or based on popular branded characters — for brand-consistent, accessible communication.
Quantifiable outcome
- Translating text into British Sign Language (BSL) and American Sign Language (ASL) with accuracy across regional dialects
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Silence Speaks
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments9 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Silence Speaks technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability6 records
Feature5 records
Silence Speaks partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- GooglecoreSilence Speaks is partnered with Google, indicating strategic collaboration to advance AI accessibility technology. The partnership supports the company's mission to make communication accessible for deaf communities.
- Nvidia InceptioncoreMember of Nvidia Inception, an acceleration programme for AI and data science startups, providing access to Nvidia's technology, expertise, and ecosystem to advance AI-powered sign language solutions.
- Transport for London (TfL)flagshipTransport for London is deploying Silence Speaks' AI-powered sign language avatar across more than 250 stations and all Metro lines. Train announcements are delivered via visual displays with sign language avatars, and QR codes on platforms provide sign language videos with travel information. This is a flagship commercial deployment demonstrating the technology in a major public transportation network.
- University of WarwickminorSupported by the University of Warwick for research and development collaboration.
- University of BathminorSupported by the University of Bath for research and development collaboration.
- Imperial College LondonminorSupported by Imperial College London for research and development collaboration.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Silence Speaks competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Strivaxyz / Strivarc (captioning & sign language interpretation services): UK-based BSL interpretation and captioning services provider; comparable as a regional competitor supplying human BSL services to the same UK enterprise verticals that Silence Speaks targets with an AI alternative.
Emerging players
- Otter.ai: AI meeting transcription and live captioning service used by deaf/hard-of-hearing professionals in meetings and education; adjacent accessibility product addressing the same communication barriers but via text rather than signing avatars.
- ProDeaf / VLibras: Brazilian government-backed avatar sign language translation service for accessibility on public digital channels; comparable as a publicly deployed avatar translation product serving a specific national sign language.
Direct peers
- Signapse: UK-based AI startup generating photo-realistic sign language avatars from text; the closest direct competitor to Silence Speaks in BSL/ASL avatar translation, particularly for transport and broadcast use cases.
- Hand Talk: Brazilian AI sign language translation platform using an animated virtual interpreter (Hugo) to translate text and websites into Libras and ASL; directly comparable as an avatar-based sign language SaaS targeting web accessibility.
- AVA (a cappella / Ava.me): Live speech-to-text captioning app for deaf and hard-of-hearing users in meetings, education, and daily conversation; overlapping accessibility and B2B use cases even though captions (not signing avatars) are the core modality.
Broad incumbents
- Sorenson Communications: Long-established US video relay service and accessibility provider serving the Deaf community; competes in the same deaf-communication market as a much larger incumbent with broader service portfolio (interpreters, captioned phones, video relay).
- Microsoft Accessibility / AI for Good: Microsoft's accessibility initiatives (real-time captions in Teams, AI for Good grants) sit upstream of the same enterprise accessibility use cases Silence Speaks targets; a broad incumbent that could choose to ship similar avatar or captioning features natively.
- Google Live Transcribe: Google's Android-based real-time speech-to-text accessibility tool and Google accessibility partnerships; relevant both as a named partner and as a free, broadly distributed overlapping capability on mobile devices.
Others
- Spread the Sign: Multi-sign-language dictionary and reference platform with video dictionaries across dozens of sign languages; comparable as a sign language data and linguistic asset but positioned as a reference, not enterprise SaaS.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Silence Speaks social profiles
Digital presenceSilence Speaks compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Silence Speaks financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Silence Speaks leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Silence Speaks funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Silence Speaks M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Silence Speaks
What does Silence Speaks do?
Silence Speaks builds an AI-powered sign language translation platform that converts text, voice, and video into British Sign Language (BSL), American Sign Language (ASL), and regional variants through AI-generated avatars in photorealistic or animated styles. The core platform is commercialised as nine sector-specific solutions — Transit Assist, Web Widget, Hospitality Assist, Retail Connect, Stream Sync, Live Sign, Class Connect, Care Connect, and Secure Sign — licensed to enterprise customers across transportation, hospitality, retail, OTT/broadcasting, video conferencing, education, healthcare, and banking. The offering includes built-in captioning, custom branded avatar characters, and a self-serve web widget for digital accessibility.
Is Silence Speaks a public or private company?
Silence Speaks is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Silence Speaks founded?
Silence Speaks was founded in 2022. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Silence Speaks based?
Silence Speaks is headquartered in Didcot, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Silence Speaks make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. B2B Licensing (Sector-Specific Solutions) is the primary driver. The others are web Widget Licensing and custom Character Licensing.
Who are Silence Speaks's main competitors?
Strivaxyz / Strivarc (captioning & sign language interpretation services) is listed as a regional player. Emerging players are Otter.ai and ProDeaf / VLibras. Direct peers are Signapse, Hand Talk and AVA (a cappella / Ava.me). Broad incumbents are Sorenson Communications, Microsoft Accessibility / AI for Good and Google Live Transcribe. Spread the Sign is listed as an others.
Does Silence Speaks have an API?
No public API is recorded for Silence Speaks.
What industry is Silence Speaks in?
Silence Speaks's product category is AI Sign Language Translation. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAKAC, Assistive Hearing & Communication Access (Captioning, Hearing Support, Transcription), with a secondary code of BPAMACAJ, Multilingual/Translation Communication Apps. Its NAICS code is 541930 and its SIC code is 7372.