Rylo Partners With Nvidia to Develop Real-Time AI Sign Language Translation

Israeli accessibility startup Rylo has announced a significant partnership with tech giant Nvidia, aiming to leverage artificial intelligence for real-time sign language translation. Under this collaboration, Rylo will gain access to Nvidia's computing resources and supercomputing systems to train advanced AI models capable of interpreting sign language and converting it into text and speech. The company anticipates this sign language translation capability will become a commercial product within the year.

Rylo is utilizing Nvidia's technology, including its Cosmos Tokenizer for more compact video representation, and other training tools from Nvidia's ecosystem. Translating sign language presents a complex challenge, as it involves not only hand movements but also facial expressions, body posture, and spatial positioning. Rylo's AI models must process video sequences and understand context, rather than simply mapping individual gestures to words. This effort builds upon Rylo's acquisition of Signum.tv last year, with Dr. Amit Moriyosef, the founder of Signum.tv, now leading Rylo's sign language translation research.

Rylo, which rebranded fromנגיש (Nagesh) and raised $85 million in June, bringing its total funding to $101 million, has also achieved profitability. The company projects a potential valuation exceeding $1 billion with further investment and aims for millions of active users and $1 billion in annual revenue within the next few years.

In parallel, Rylo is launching Rylo Desktop, a free application for Mac computers that adds real-time captions to video calls on platforms like Zoom, Teams, and Google Meet. This application operates over the chosen call service, ensuring a consistent transcription experience. While free for end-users, Rylo generates revenue through usage fees, with potential funding from the FCC and employers in the US seeking to make meetings accessible for deaf and hard-of-hearing employees. This move positions Rylo against competitors like Google, Microsoft, and Zoom, emphasizing its specialization in accessibility and cross-platform functionality.

Rylo's broader vision includes reaching millions of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals worldwide, a population exceeding one billion. The company's accessibility services are also available in Israel in Hebrew, free of charge since October 7th, expanding its reach beyond the US market. This expansion aligns with Nvidia's strategy of deepening ties with AI companies by providing computing power, software, and infrastructure, thereby expanding its own ecosystem.