02 Oct BeneTalk, a Speech Therapy Technology Company, Receives Investment from Henley Business Angels Member
BeneTalk, a speech therapy technology company that specialises in the development of a wearable digital speech device, has received investment from one Henley Business Angels (HBA) member, contributing towards a total funding round of £350,000.
The way BeneTalk’s speech device works is through monitoring the wearer’s biofeedback and communicating the data to a mobile app that monitors breathing, speech patterns and more. This allows real-time feedback and performance history tracking for the wearer, with a focus on fluency habits during daily activities rather than traditional speech therapy methods that rely heavily on training exercises that have a short term benefit but rely on maintenance to remain effective in the long run.
BeneTalk is also addressing a significant need. Approximately 10% of the UK’s population has a speech impediment of some kind and speech and language needs are estimated to cost the economy $500bn a year, but there is currently a lack of viable technological solutions to solve this problem.
In addition to the HBA investment, BeneTalk has just received a grant of £375,000 from InnovateUK. With the funds they have raised, BeneTalk plans to carry out a clinical study, working with the University of Reading to demonstrate the effectiveness of the BeneTalk’s software and proprietary speech tracker ultimately to deliver a more effective treatment for dysfluency.
Jordi Fernandez, Founder and CEO of BeneTalk, said: “Our vision is to build the most accessible and effective AI speech therapy that has the potential to transform the lives of 10% of the population. I was very lucky to get enough help, but others are not as lucky. HBA is helping us to transform the lives of millions of people like me.”
Jurek Sikorski, Director of HBA, added: “Jordi’s personal story has driven him to start BeneTalk. To meet Jordi is to know he will succeed in bringing a new and more effective therapy to those who struggle with speech impediment. The AI driven software solution has received a lot of interest from both patients and speech therapists and HBA is pleased to support Jordi on his journey to achieve his ambition to change treatment for the better.”
HBA is sponsored and supported by:
HBA is a member of:
