yomma

What yomma does

yomma GmbH is a Berlin- and Hamburg-headquartered German accessibility services company specializing in German Sign Language (DGS) content, founded in 2004 by Mathias Schäfer and Benedikt J. Sequeira Gerardo, with Henrik Müller as current managing director. The firm produces sign-language videos for public-sector websites, museums, cultural institutions and enterprises; delivers on-site and online DGS interpreting including livestream; and runs an in-house production suite (customer portal, text review, subtitle editor, DGS lexicon management, teleprompter, video cutter). It also operates two product extensions: SQAT, a BITV 2.0-compliant web-based sign-language-to-text translation service for digital contact forms, and yoDGS, a consumer mobile learning app for German Sign Language on iOS and Android.

yomma's core technology stack combines professional media production with accessibility-specific tooling and an AI research line via the BMBF-funded AVASAG project (2020–2023), which developed a sign-language avatar for translating travel announcements into DGS in partnership with DFKI, Charamel, Ergosign, TH Köln and Universität Augsburg. Customers include federal ministries (BMG), federal agencies (Deutsche Rentenversicherung, Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung), states and cities (Hamburg, Berlin, Gemeinde Köngen, Stadt Vellberg), major museums (Deutsches Historisches Museum, Deutsches Technikmuseum, Bauhaus Dessau, Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas), Deutsche Bank's Palais Populaire, and cultural foundations.

The business model is primarily project-based professional services sold via direct enterprise field sales with custom quotes, supplemented by recurring subscription revenue from SQAT and the yoDGS app. Customer segments are vertical-led, with public institutions and museums as primary targets and private enterprises, education and digital service providers as secondary segments. Go-to-market relies on direct consultation, content marketing through the yomma.de site, organic social (LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook), and industry events; pricing is not publicly disclosed. The firm is privately held, has no disclosed outside funding, and operates as a going concern across its three German offices.

Name

yomma

Legal name

yomma GmbH

Website

https://yomma.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

yomma GmbH produces German Sign Language videos, live and online interpreting, and BITV 2.0-compliant digital accessibility tools (SQAT, yoDGS app) for German federal agencies, museums, cultural institutions and enterprises.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sign Language Accessibility Services

NAICS

Translation and Interpretation Services (541930)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Translation, Language Accessibility & Reading Support Tools (e.g., TTS, Captions, Immersive Reader) (EDAFAOAL)

Keywords

• Sign language video production
• Sign language interpreting services
• Digital accessibility compliance
• BITV 2.0 accessibility
• Deaf community services

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Sign Language Video Production: Professional sign language videos for websites, museums, cultural institutions, government agencies, and media companies. Includes BITV 2.0 compliant video production, Film im Film (FiF) format, and videoguides.
2. Interpreting Services: Sign language interpreting for authorities, events, education, workplaces, and private occasions - both on-site and online. Includes livestream interpreting for conferences and digital formats.
3. SQAT Service: Web-based sign language translation service for websites and contact forms, providing BITV 2.0 compliant digital accessibility solutions for public and private organizations.
4. yoDGS App: Educational sign language learning application with interactive modules for vocabulary, grammar, and cultural aspects of German Sign Language.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

yomma produces professional German Sign Language (DGS) videos, provides on-site and online sign language interpreting, and delivers digital accessibility solutions for public institutions, cultural organizations, and enterprises. Core services include BITV 2.0/WCAG 2.1 compliant video production, museum videoguides, livestream interpreting, and the SQAT web-based translation service, with recurring revenue from the yoDGS mobile learning app.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• yoDGS: Interactive learning app for German Sign Language (Deutsche Gebärdensprache) - a mobile, playful and inclusive app for learning DGS with vocabulary, grammar and cultural aspects.
• SQAT
• AVASAG

Products and services

• Sign Language Video Production
• Interpreting Services
• Livestream Interpreting
• SQAT (Signing Question Answer Tool)
• yoDGS App
• DGSdirekt Translation Service
• Museum Accessibility Offerings
• Film im Film (FiF) Sign Language Videos
• BITV 2.0 Compliance Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,000 successfully implemented projects in sign language and media accessibility
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Charamel GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2020Specialist for interactive avatar-based assistance systems, Cologne. Led the AVASAG project (BMBF-funded 2020-2023) for developing AI-powered sign language avatars for travel information accessibility.
• Ergosign GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2020Pioneer for User Experience Design, Saarbrücken. Partner in AVASAG consortium developing avatar-based sign language solutions for public information accessibility.
• Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Künstliche Intelligenz (DFKI) GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2020Research areas 'Cognitive Assistance Systems' and 'Speech Technology and Multilingualism'. Partner in AVASAG project for AI-based sign language avatar development.
• Technische Hochschule KölncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2020Institute for Media and Photo Technology. Research partner in AVASAG project focusing on visual presentation and technical implementation of sign language avatars.
• Universität AugsburgcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2020Human Centered Multimedia department. Research partner in AVASAG project contributing to user experience and accessibility research.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Ava: AI-powered live captioning and accessibility platform for meetings and conversations, primarily serving deaf and hard-of-hearing users. Comparable technology direction to SQAT and yomma's accessibility tooling for digital and live events.
• Hand Talk: Brazilian AI-driven sign language translation platform using an avatar to translate written and spoken content into Brazilian Sign Language (Libras). Comparable to yomma's AVASAG research in bringing automated sign language translation to market.
• Signapse: UK-based AI company developing automated sign language video generation for transport announcements, public information, and broadcast. Closest direct competitor to yomma's AVASAG avatar work in commercializing automated DGS/BSL translation.

Direct peers

• Purple Communications: US-based provider of on-demand sign language video interpreting and VRS for deaf and hard-of-hearing users. Direct peer in the video-sign-language-interpretation market yomma addresses.
• Convo: US-based on-demand sign language video relay and interpretation platform serving deaf and hard-of-hearing users and enterprise customers. Directly comparable in on-demand interpreting model.
• Sorenson Communications: US-based leading provider of Video Relay Services (VRS) and on-demand sign language interpretation for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. Direct peer to yomma's interpreting business, although focused on ASL rather than DGS.

Regional players

• SignVideo (UK): UK-based provider of British Sign Language (BSL) video interpreting for businesses, public services, and consumer-facing organizations. Comparable offering in a parallel (BSL rather than DGS) national sign language market.

Broad incumbents

• Lionbridge: Global enterprise translation, localization, and interpretation services company. A broad incumbent that competes with yomma on multilingual content production and could expand into sign language accessibility at scale.
• 3Play Media: US-based provider of video accessibility services including captioning, transcription, subtitling, and audio description. Comparable on the media-accessibility services side of yomma's business (museum videos, public sector digital content).
• LanguageLine Solutions: Global leader in on-demand spoken-language and sign language interpretation for enterprises, governments, and healthcare. A broad incumbent whose sign-language portfolio competes with yomma's interpreting and translation services at scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@yommaberlin
• Facebookfacebook.com/yomma.gmbh
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/yomma
• Instagraminstagram.com/yomma.de/?hl=de

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about yomma