Respeecher to Teach AI Chatbots to Speak Natural Ukrainian
Ukrainian AI startup Respeecher plans to teach artificial intelligence to speak Ukrainian — not only in standard form but also in regional dialects and surzhyk, a widely used mixed form of everyday Ukrainian speech. The company confirmed the news to Scroll.media.
Respeecher has launched a Ukrainian-language Text-to-speech srvice that enables brand assistants, as well as chatbots for banks and telecoms, to communicate in a natural-sounding Ukrainian without the «artificial» accent typically associated with foreign AI tools.
According to the company, any user will be able to convert text into Ukrainian audio.
«We wanted avatars, chatbots, and AI assistants of banks and telecom companies in Ukraine to finally speak real Ukrainian — with all its plasticity, uniqueness, dialects, and even Surzhyk, and most importantly, without the plastic accent that foreign AI services produce today. And who better to build Ukrainian voice AI models than a Ukrainian startup that has trained extensively with Hollywood companies such as HBO, Paramount, and Netflix?» said Dmytro Bielievtsov, CTO and co-founder of Respeecher.
He added that the team trained its LLM on hundreds of hours of Ukrainian recordings so chatbots can «speak real Ukrainian.»
How It Works
- After registering on the platform, users gain access to a library of voices representing various genders, ages, timbres, and tones, and can choose the one that best suits their needs.
- For ethical reasons, Respeecher does not allow cloning someone’s voice without their consent. Instead, voice actors agree to have their voices added to the catalog and receive 25% royalties. To prevent misuse, all generated audio is moderated.
- Users simply type text and receive Ukrainian speech in real time. The audio latency is 100–200 milliseconds, which is «faster than a mouse click,» according to the team.
- It’s also possible to train the model on the voice of a company employee or a well-known figure, allowing an AI assistant or chatbot to speak in their voice. Companies can integrate the new Ukrainian-language service directly via API.
Why It Matters
- According to the founders, the nuances and flexibility of Ukrainian are easier to capture when native speakers train the model. With hundreds of hours of recordings, Respeecher can detect exactly where speech sounds unnatural and starts to feel robotic.
- While other voice-AI companies can match speed, their text-to-speech quality often lags behind because the voices sound less authentic.
The Ukrainian team at Respeecher has been working with neural networks since 2018 and has extensive experience in accent modification. Recently, they helped improve Adrien Brody’s Hungarian accent in the Oscar-winning film Brutalist and rejuvenated the voice of 91-year-old James Earl Jones, the iconic voice of Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Respeecher to Teach AI Chatbots to Speak Natural Ukrainian
Ukrainian AI startup Respeecher plans to teach artificial intelligence to speak Ukrainian — not only in standard form but also in regional dialects and surzhyk, a widely used mixed form of everyday Ukrainian speech. The company confirmed the news to Scroll.media.
Respeecher has launched a Ukrainian-language Text-to-speech srvice that enables brand assistants, as well as chatbots for banks and telecoms, to communicate in a natural-sounding Ukrainian without the «artificial» accent typically associated with foreign AI tools.
According to the company, any user will be able to convert text into Ukrainian audio.
«We wanted avatars, chatbots, and AI assistants of banks and telecom companies in Ukraine to finally speak real Ukrainian — with all its plasticity, uniqueness, dialects, and even Surzhyk, and most importantly, without the plastic accent that foreign AI services produce today. And who better to build Ukrainian voice AI models than a Ukrainian startup that has trained extensively with Hollywood companies such as HBO, Paramount, and Netflix?» said Dmytro Bielievtsov, CTO and co-founder of Respeecher.
He added that the team trained its LLM on hundreds of hours of Ukrainian recordings so chatbots can «speak real Ukrainian.»
How It Works
- After registering on the platform, users gain access to a library of voices representing various genders, ages, timbres, and tones, and can choose the one that best suits their needs.
- For ethical reasons, Respeecher does not allow cloning someone’s voice without their consent. Instead, voice actors agree to have their voices added to the catalog and receive 25% royalties. To prevent misuse, all generated audio is moderated.
- Users simply type text and receive Ukrainian speech in real time. The audio latency is 100–200 milliseconds, which is «faster than a mouse click,» according to the team.
- It’s also possible to train the model on the voice of a company employee or a well-known figure, allowing an AI assistant or chatbot to speak in their voice. Companies can integrate the new Ukrainian-language service directly via API.
Why It Matters
- According to the founders, the nuances and flexibility of Ukrainian are easier to capture when native speakers train the model. With hundreds of hours of recordings, Respeecher can detect exactly where speech sounds unnatural and starts to feel robotic.
- While other voice-AI companies can match speed, their text-to-speech quality often lags behind because the voices sound less authentic.
The Ukrainian team at Respeecher has been working with neural networks since 2018 and has extensive experience in accent modification. Recently, they helped improve Adrien Brody’s Hungarian accent in the Oscar-winning film Brutalist and rejuvenated the voice of 91-year-old James Earl Jones, the iconic voice of Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi.
