A new plug-and-play solution, Soundshape 1 Pro, aims to provide event
organisers and AV professionals with a powerful and cost-effective tool for
delivering real-time captioning and multilingual translation at scale.
Developed by Speaksee, Soundshape is designed to make accessibility the
standard for any venue or event hosting large groups. The AI-powered system
seamlessly integrates with existing AV setups to provide live subtitles with
over 95 per cent accuracy and a latency of less than one second. The technology is
already being used by major UK event organisers and venues, including the
London Marathon, Glasgow Caledonian University, and Westminster Chapel.
As the events industry faces increasing demand for inclusive experiences,
Soundshape 1 Pro offers a simple yet robust solution. The system is engineered
for rapid deployment, connecting to any existing AV system with just three
cables (audio, power, and internet), eliminating the need for specialist IT
support during setup. Once live, attendees can simply scan a QR code with their
own smartphone to receive a direct feed of the captions. Key features for the
events and AV industry include: The system can translate speech into over 100
languages, allowing attendees to select their preferred language on their
device. This makes it an essential tool for international conferences and
diverse audiences.
The technology is designed to handle
various regional accents and clearly distinguishes between multiple speakers in
panel discussions by using colour-coding.
Organisers can offer captions directly to attendees' personal devices via a QR
code, or project the subtitles onto main presentation screens for universal
visibility. Soundshape 1 Pro is up to ten times cheaper than hiring human
interpreters and up to seven times more affordable than other translation
software solutions, offering a scalable and budget-friendly alternative.
“Many organisations still don’t have a solution to truly include deaf people,
those who are hard of hearing, and non-native speakers, and the technology that
is used often comes with delays and errors," said Jari Hazelebach, founder
of Speaksee and Soundshape. "At Speaksee, it is our mission to make
inclusion the standard in every place where large groups of people come
together. With Soundshape 1 Pro, we are a big step closer to reaching that
goal.”
The system is fully GDPR-compliant and ISO 27001-certified, with all data
processed on European servers and automatically deleted after each event,
ensuring it meets the highest security standards required for corporate and
public sector events. Early adopters include major European venues and
corporations.
Marc van Kaam, general director of Luxor Theater Rotterdam,
said: “With Soundshape 1 Pro, we now have a tool that allows deaf and
hard-of-hearing visitors to fully experience selected programs. In this way, we
hope to make a valuable contribution to the accessibility of our theatre.”
With two deaf parents, Dutch entrepreneur Jari Hazelebach, co-founder and CEO
of Speaksee, has firsthand experience with the social challenges that come with
communication barriers. He made it his mission to harness technology for a more
inclusive society.
In 2017, he developed the Speaksee app together with Marcel
van der Ven (co-founder and CTO). This device converts conversations into
accurate written text in more than 100 languages, with colour coding for each
participant. In 2024, Erwin van Oosten joined the team as COO. In 2025,
Speaksee launched its subsidiary, Soundshape, and introduced the Soundshape 1
Pro: a plug-and-play system for AI-powered real-time captioning and translation
in 100 languages with 95 per cent accuracy, designed for venues where large groups of
people gather. The technology is already being used by hundreds of deaf and
hard-of-hearing people in the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK, as well as by
organisations such as KPN, Rabobank, PwC, the Dutch Government, the Netherlands
Institute for Sound & Vision, Luxor Theater Rotterdam, and the Twente
University of Technology.
