ElevenLabs Impact Program Innovates in Assistive Technology

Approximately 97 million people worldwide and around 2 million in Europe cannot rely on their natural speech to communicate, making them candidates for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) technologies. Yet many existing AAC solutions still rely on voices that sound generic or robotic - limiting users' ability to express their personalities.

That's why we've partnered with Smartbox, a leading developer of assistive communication tools used by tens of thousands around the world, through our Impact Program. This collaboration brings ElevenLabs' advanced voice technology directly into Smartbox's Grid 3 and Grid for iPad software, giving AAC users access to more authentic, lifelike, and expressive voices.

By integrating ElevenLabs voice technology into Smartbox, a leading provider of tablet-based communication devices, people facing voice loss can speak in a way that feels natural - even in their own voice rebuilt from past recordings - on a device they already use and trust. Our Impact Program ensures those with MND/ALS can access this technology at no cost. For artist and MND advocate Sarah Ezekiel, this meant hearing her authentic voice again after decades.

Sarah's Story: Identity Through Voice

Sarah Ezekiel exemplifies what's possible when modern voice AI meets human resilience. An internationally recognized eye gaze artist and advocate for people living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), Sarah was diagnosed in 2000 while pregnant with her second child. Since 2005, when assistive technology reconnected her to her world, Sarah has pushed creative boundaries — creating stunning artwork using her eyes, exhibiting internationally, and in 2023, directing "Ms MaNDy's Adventures in Wonderland," a multimedia drag theatre show that challenged perceptions of disability and identity.

Now, using ElevenLabs technology, Sarah communicates with her own voice again. Using audio from decades-old recordings, she's preserved her authentic voice identity, bringing it to her advocacy work, art direction, and daily conversations. For Sarah's children, who were so young when she lost her ability to speak that they couldn't remember what her voice sounded like, hearing her cloned voice was a profound moment of reconnection.

In this video, Sarah Ezekiel and her son discuss the profound impact of her ElevenLabs voice clone —giving her family the chance to hear her authentic voice again after decades — with insights from Smartbox Group CEO Dougal Ramsay.

Sarah was featured on the BBC on August 20th, showcasing how she's using Smartbox and ElevenLabs technology to communicate authentically and push creative boundaries. Read her story here: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1ejvxne7elo

Making Communication More Human

Smartbox's software helps people with limited or no speech communicate using symbol- or text-based systems. While these tools provide the words, creating a voice that truly reflects a person's identity has been a major technical challenge. Capturing natural expression, emotion, and individuality in synthetic speech is complex — and it's a challenge ElevenLabs has faced head-on.

By integrating ElevenLabs voices directly within Grid, users can choose from natural-sounding options that reflect their age, accent, and personality — or go a step further by cloning their own voice for the highest level of personalization and voice identity. Individuals with degenerative conditions such as MND/ALS, as well as those facing voice loss from cancer treatments or other medical procedures, can create a professional voice clone using past recordings, home videos, or other audio archives — not just newly recorded samples. This allows people to preserve their own, individual voice even if they were unable to make recordings before treatment or disease progression caused voice changes.

The Impact of Better Voices

This partnership represents more than just a technology integration - it's about maximizing accessibility by meeting people where they are. We're also working with other AAC technology companies to continue expanding access to natural-sounding, personalized voices across the devices and platforms people already use.

Through collaborations like these, we ensure that AAC technology helps people communicate not only effectively, but in a way that reflects their personality and identity. Sarah's journey illustrates what we're working toward: a world where losing your speech and losing your voice identity do not have to coincide.

Learn more about ElevenLabs voices in Grid: https://thinksmartbox.com/news/voices-that-foster-connection-and-belonging/

Visit our Impact page for more information: https://elevenlabs.io/impact-program