ADST · Project

Digital Speech Therapy Tools That Cut Stuttering Relapse and Therapy Costs

healthPilotedTRL 7

Imagine going to a speech therapist for stuttering, doing months of exercises — and then 84% of people end up stuttering again anyway. That's because traditional therapy still relies on pen-and-paper methods with no way to track how you actually speak in daily life. This project built a smartphone app for patients and a dashboard for therapists that automatically detects stuttering patterns in real speech, so therapists finally see what's happening outside the clinic. Think of it like a Fitbit for your speech — it measures fluency in real time and helps the brain lock in proper techniques.

By the numbers

84%

Relapse rate in traditional stuttering therapy

10%

Population affected by speech impediments

€32 Billion

Annual global spending on speech therapy

5 out of 6

Patients who continue to stutter after traditional therapy

Product languages available (French, German, Polish)

2nd place

EU eHealth competition ranking (Amsterdam, 2016)

The business problem

What needed solving

Speech therapy for stuttering has an 84% relapse rate — 5 out of 6 patients go back to stuttering after treatment. Traditional therapy still runs on pen-and-paper methods, giving therapists zero visibility into how patients actually speak in daily life. Meanwhile, health systems spend roughly €32 Billion per year on speech therapy with these poor outcomes.

The solution

What was built

NiNiSpeech built a digital therapy platform with two main components: a patient-facing app (PWS App) that helps people who stutter practice and internalize speech techniques, and a therapist dashboard (SLP Dashboard) that provides real-world speech data. The system includes automatic detection and measurement of speech fluency — described as the first of its kind. The product was made available in French, German, and Polish.

Audience

Who needs this

Speech therapy clinic chains looking to improve patient outcomes and reduce relapseHealth insurers covering speech therapy benefits who want to cut repeat treatment costsHospital rehabilitation departments treating speech disordersCorporate HR and disability inclusion programs supporting employees with speech impedimentsEdTech companies building language and communication training platforms

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Healthcare & Speech Therapy Clinics

any

Target: Speech therapy clinic chains or rehabilitation centers

If you are a speech therapy clinic dealing with high patient relapse rates and limited visibility into patient progress between sessions — this project developed a digital platform with a patient app and therapist dashboard that automatically detects and measures speech fluency. With 84% of stuttering patients relapsing after traditional therapy, this tool gives therapists real-world speech data to dramatically improve outcomes.

Health Insurance & Managed Care

enterprise

Target: Health insurance companies covering speech therapy benefits

If you are a health insurer spending heavily on speech therapy claims with poor long-term outcomes — this technology reduces therapy costs by enabling remote monitoring and data-driven treatment. The speech therapy market costs an estimated €32 Billion annually, and with 84% relapse rates, insurers are paying for repeated treatment cycles that this digital approach aims to break.

EdTech & Corporate Training

mid-size

Target: Corporate HR departments or training companies

If you are an HR department or training company supporting employees with speech difficulties that affect workplace performance — this project created digital tools available in French, German, and Polish that help users practice speech techniques independently. With 10% of the population affected by speech impediments, this addresses a real barrier to employment and career progression.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What does this technology cost to implement?

Specific pricing is not available in the project data. NiNiSpeech operates as an SME and received EU SME Instrument Phase 2 funding to commercialize the product. Based on available project data, the solution includes a patient app (PWS App) and a therapist dashboard (SLP Dashboard), suggesting a SaaS-type licensing model.

Can this scale across multiple languages and markets?

Yes. The project deliverables confirm an available product in French, German, and Polish, demonstrating multi-language capability. The coordinator NiNiSpeech is based in Israel and targeted European markets, indicating the platform was designed for international deployment from the start.

What is the IP and licensing situation?

NiNiSpeech Ltd. owns the intellectual property as the sole consortium partner. The company holds proprietary technology for automatic detection and measurement of speech fluency, which they describe as the first and only such system. Licensing terms would need to be discussed directly with NiNiSpeech.

Is this clinically validated?

The project ran for over two years (2016-2018) under EU SME Instrument Phase 2, which requires market validation activities. NiNiSpeech won 2nd place in the EU eHealth competition in Amsterdam in June 2016. Based on available project data, clinical validation details would need to be confirmed with the company.

How does this integrate with existing clinical systems?

The system consists of two components: a PWS App for patients and an SLP Dashboard for therapists. Based on available project data, the platform provides therapists a first view into real-world speech data. Integration specifics with existing EHR or clinic management systems would need to be discussed with NiNiSpeech.

What is the timeline to deploy this in a clinic?

The product was available in three European languages by end of 2018, suggesting deployment readiness. As an SME Instrument Phase 2 project, the technology was at commercialization stage. Current deployment timelines should be confirmed directly with NiNiSpeech at ninispeech.com.

Consortium

Who built it

This is a single-company project — NiNiSpeech Ltd. from Israel is the sole partner, which is typical for SME Instrument Phase 2 grants designed to help innovative SMEs scale their products. The consortium is 100% industry with no academic or research partners, signaling that the fundamental research was already done and the focus was entirely on commercialization. For a potential business partner, this means you are dealing directly with the product company, not navigating a multi-partner academic consortium. Decisions and licensing discussions go through one entity.

How to reach the team

NiNiSpeech Ltd. (Israel) — contact through ninispeech.com or request introduction via SciTransfer

Order a report on this consortium

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to integrate digital speech therapy tools into your clinic or insurance offering? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to NiNiSpeech and help evaluate fit for your market.

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