After turning down a full-ride master’s degree offer, Yamillet Payano took a leap—founding a startup with two fellow innovators she met by chance. That leap led to Sign-Speak, a real-time ASL recognition and transcription platform changing how businesses communicate with Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities.

Now a participant in the Syracuse Surge Accelerator, Sign-Speak is scaling fast. The team has already grown its sign language dataset by more than 10x—giving them a significant advantage in building inclusive, AI-powered tools that can be embedded in phones, computers, and workplace tech.

“The Deaf community pays just as much for smartphones as anyone else,” said Payano. “They deserve the same experience.”

This isn’t just about innovation—it’s about equity. It’s about rewriting the tech narrative to include everyone, and Sign-Speak is leading the charge.

👉 Read the full article and learn how Sign-Speak is using technology to create lasting impact:
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