The widespread transition to remote work environments has presented both advantages and challenges for individuals with hearing impairments. While the shift to text-based office communication enhances accessibility, participating in virtual meetings remains as difficult as in-person interactions—a key reason for the significant growth in users for real-time captioning company Ava. Building on this momentum, the company recently unveiled two new products and secured $4.5 million in seed funding.

Ava initially gained recognition within the deaf community as a valuable tool for live transcription of face-to-face conversations. The application instantly captures and transcribes spoken words, assigning distinct colors to each speaker (and identifying them upon QR code activation). However, the shift from physical meeting rooms to platforms like Zoom introduced new complexities.

“The ways in which our services are utilized have changed considerably, and people are realizing that many available tools lack accessibility features,” explained co-founder and CEO Thibault Duchemin to TechCrunch.

Although certain platforms offer integrated captioning capabilities (such as Skype and Google Meet), these features often have limitations regarding saving, editing, accuracy, and ease of review. For example, Google Meet’s temporary captions disappear quickly and do not identify the speaker, making them less helpful for deaf or hard of hearing individuals attempting to follow a group discussion. Furthermore, the number of supported languages is restricted.

As Duchemin noted, it became increasingly practical to develop a separate transcription service independent of any specific platform.

This led to the creation of Ava’s new product, a desktop and web application called Closed Captioning. This application functions seamlessly with all major meeting platforms and online content, providing captions with the same on-screen display and accessible through a unified account. This includes content such as YouTube videos lacking subtitles, live web broadcasts, and even audio-only formats like podcasts, in over 15 languages.

Speakers are identified individually, either automatically through compatible applications like Zoom, or by participants clicking a link to associate their voice with their identity. (Concerns regarding privacy and confidentiality exist, but these will vary depending on the situation and are secondary to the fundamental right to participate.)

All transcripts are saved to the user’s Ava application, allowing for convenient review or sharing with other meeting attendees. Duchemin highlighted the difficulty in finding a service with this functionality.

“It’s a surprisingly complex issue,” he stated. “Currently, Ava is the only technology that can accurately label who said what during a meeting with multiple participants, which is particularly valuable in a professional setting.” Without such a tool, he explained, meetings often become undocumented and difficult to recall, unless someone is diligently taking notes—a process that is often impractical, costly, and time-consuming.

He acknowledged that standard speech-to-text AI technology, while adequate for general conversation, does not provide the necessary level of accuracy for professional use. “We are focused on supporting professionals and students who are deaf or hard of hearing,” Duchemin said. “They require solutions for both in-person and virtual meetings and classes, and are not yet ready to rely solely on AI. They need a service to refine the transcript, which is what we provide.”

Ava Scribe rapidly connects users with trained professionals skilled in correcting the output of speech-to-text algorithms. This ensures that deaf or hard of hearing individuals can follow along live during a meeting or class, and have confidence that the transcript will be precise when reviewed later.

Currently, transcription tools are often offered as supplementary features to existing products, serving as incentives for customers. They are not typically developed with the specific needs of the deaf and hard of hearing community as the primary focus, which is the approach Ava has consistently taken.

The increasing popularity and clear benefits of their platform have contributed to this $4.5 million seed round, led by Initialized Capital and Khosla Ventures, with participation from Day One Ventures.

Duchemin indicated that the funding will be used to expand the team and intensify marketing efforts to attract larger clients. “We operate in a specialized market, so a robust business model is essential for growth,” he said. However, a strong and distinctive product provides a solid foundation for success.