Former Stanford students began developing the accent app after losing call center job

A group of Stanford students have begun testing an artifical intelligence-powered app that can alter one’s accent in real time; wherein the idea for the project emerged after one of them lost their call center job.

According to a report by CNN, the former student lost his job due to customers having a hard time understanding him, in spite of the fact that the graduate was fluent in both English and Spanish, and a qualified systems engineer.

The company, Sanas, is testing the software under the slogan “Speech, Reminaged”. According to the developers, the software could be launched, for example, in a call center in the Philippines, while the customer service agent could sound like a Kansas native.

The trio who founded Sanas met at Stanford University, but they’re all from different countries originally — Serebryakov, now the CEO, is from Russia; Andrés Pérez Soderi, now the chief financial officer, is from Venezuela; and Shawn Zhang, now the chief technology officer, is from China.

The startup’s founder assert that people aren’t being heard for what they say, but merely for what their accent sounds like.

The company, which was launched last year, has the global mission “to bring people closer together”. The founders have stated that call centers are merely the beginning. Zhang said that he joined the startup to help people who felt like they weren’t being heard.

Zhang also remarked that his mother, who moved to the United States 20 years ago, still hesitated to speak to grocers due to her accent.

Sanas is one of the many startup companies that have launched since the Great Resignation movement started.