Google Look to Speak app lets you choose phrases with your eyes

An experimental app launched by Google on Tuesday (8) will make it easier for people with motor or speech disabilities to communicate. Compatible with Android 9 or higher, Look to Speak allows users to select phrases indicated by the app by looking at their eyes.

Google speech-language pathologist Richard Cave spearheaded the Look to Speak project. He works with people who have speech and motor disabilities, especially language problems. “This is more than just a job for me,” Cave said in a blog post announcing the app. “Every day, I strive to help people find easier, more accessible ways to express their identity, their opinions and feelings.”

To activate Look to Speak on Android, simply point your finger upwards. You can then navigate by looking left or right and then select the desired sentence from a pre-determined list. The sentence in question is then read to the speaker. The only downside, however, is that the app's settings menu – where sentences can be edited – is not accessible by looking and can only be activated by manual touch.

To track eye movement, Look to Speak uses the phone's front camera as a kind of sensor. The device should be placed just below eye level. You can also adjust the tracker's sensitivity (as mentioned above, only with manual touch). Google assures that the data is private and remains on the device.

Look to Speak is part of the “Start with One, Invent for Many” collection, launched by the Experiments with Google project. Among the most famous experiments on the platform is an app that reproduces infinitely an alternate versions music video for “Bad Guy”, by American singer Billie Eilish.

Street: Engadget.