How the movie ‘Avatar’ inspired a Kenyan company to develop tech for the deaf community

In the latest episode of Marketplace Africa, CNN’s Victoria Rubadiri meets Kenyan tech company Signvrse who are developing a catalogue of Kenyan sign language signs and realistic motion translations using an AI technology they’ve developed.

CNN takes a look at the tech, the growth strategy for the sector, and how AI is making accessibility a standard instead of an afterthought. Inspired by the movie ‘Avatar’s use of motion capture technology, Signvrse built an AI powered tool they call ‘the visual Google Translate for sign language’.

The company’s founder, Elly Savatia, explains how this tool can help the deaf community, “There’s a lot of opportunity and just a lot of possibilities where these can be applied to make any piece of content and information accessible in sign language, think podcasts, think TV, think entertainment, think public announcements, think safety information, think application into healthcare.” Savatia takes Rubadiri behind the scenes at Signvrse’s motion capture studio to show how the tool works.

He explains, “We have two identical booths, each of them is equipped with OptiTrack motion capture cameras, and an OptiTrack prime colour inside there. So, the idea is we have a deaf person, interpreter, sit here and we have this iPhone that captures visual data, and this prompter we cue sentences words and phrases for them to sign.” Kenya Airways is in discussions to add Signvrse’s technology to their offerings, such as real time flight security information.

Linda Okolo, Diversity & Disability Inclusion Champion for Kenya Airways explains the importance of making these features accessible, “Inclusivity is not only a social imperative, it’s an economic one as well. Meaning that there’s money on the table that we’ve been leaving by leaving persons with disabilities.” These interviews were featured on the latest episode of Marketplace Africa on CNN International.