Jhansi shares her unique dual perspective—firstly as a researcher pushing boundaries in the field, and secondly as a member of the PhD panel, where she helped guide the next generation of scientists.

Host: Spyretta Leivaditi

Post-Production: Mohammed Mosuily, Pascal Hecker, Spyretta Leivaditi

Yuanyuan joins us to talk about her research in inclusive speech technology and the power of representation in AI. Whether she’s collecting personalized audio-video datasets or organizing the next big Interspeech, Yan is a champion for community.

Tune in for a candid conversation about:

• Diverse Data: Accented, child, and disaster-related speech.

• Leadership: Transitioning from workshop participant to organizer.

• The PhD Mindset: Overcoming stress and prioritizing mental health.

  
  

  Host: Spyretta Leivaditi

  Post-Production: Mohammed Mosuily, Pascal Hecker

Fresh from the Young Female Researchers in Speech Workshop (YFRSW) 2025, Chin-Jou Li joins us to share her experience as a rising voice in the field. Chin-Jou discusses her poster presentation "Towards Inclusive ASR: Investigating Voice Conversion for Dysarthric Speech Recognition in Low-Resource Languages", her reflections on the mentoring and community at the workshop.

Host: Spyretta Leiavditi

Post-Production: Mohammed Mosuily, Pascal Hecker

Julian Zaidi and Marc-André Carbonneau are discussing the practical differences between academic speech research and industrial application within the video game sector. The guests compare the Speech Synthesis Workshop to the broader Interspeech conference, noting that smaller venues allow for more technical discussions on voice cloning and evaluation metrics. They highlight critical challenges for the industry, such as maintaining speaker identity across varied emotions and the necessity for compact models that run efficiently on local hardware. The conversation further explores the cultural shift required when moving to a commercial environment, where consistent reliability and effective communication with non-experts are prioritised over theoretical novelty. Ultimately, the speakers emphasise that while academia thrives on exploration, industry demands functional, high-performance tools that meet the strict expectations of players.

Host: Paige Tuttösi

Post-Production: Zhengjun Yue, Pascal Hecker

We travel to the Speech Synthesis Workshop (SSW) 2025 to sit down with Xin Wang, Project Associate Professor at the National Institute of Informatics (NII) in Japan. Xin shares insights into his groundbreaking work. We also explore the highlights of this year's workshop and the evolving landscape of synthetic media.

Host: Paige Tuttösi

Post-Production: Tianyi Zhao, Pascal Hecker

Kick off the Speech Synthesis Workshop 2026 with an opening message from Matt Coler. In this introductory segment, Matt sets the stage for a year of breakthrough research, collaborative innovation, and the evolving landscape of synthetic speech. Whether you’re a veteran researcher or a curious newcomer, the journey starts here.

Host: Matt Coler

Post-Production: Zhengjun Yue, Pascal Hecker

From strangers to champions! 🏆 Meet Yassine Tijani and Joas Walraven, two young innovators who crossed paths at the Speech Science Festival and decided to team up on the spot. Tune in to hear how they dominated the Hackathon, what sparked their interest in speech tech, and the story behind their winning collaboration.

Host: Pascal Hecker

Post-Production: Pascal Hecker

Live from the Speech Science Festival! 🎤 We sat down with the University of Waterloo’s Nada Gohider and her wonderful children to get an inside look at this year's festivities. From hands-on events to the science of sound, they’re sharing their favorite moments and the unique energy that makes this festival a must-attend for families and researchers alike.

Host: Pascal Hecker

Post-Production: Pascal Hecker

Your memories, composed. 🎹 Paul Raingeard de la Blétière is bridging the gap between technology and nostalgia. This demo showcases his innovative robot that listens to life stories and transforms them into fully-realized songs. From chosen instruments to lyric-matching memories, it’s a personalized symphony for the soul, specifically crafted for the dementia community.

Host: Janice Huang

Post-Production: Wei Xue, Pascal Hecker

We introduce three innovators pushing the boundaries of speech tech in a fast-paced "Science Slam" format.

• Aruna Srivastava (Univ. of Washington/Coal Labs): How movie clips can help you master any accent.

• Jashu (Groningen University): The journey from China to the Netherlands to master the art of Singing Voice Synthesis.

• Randy (TU Delft): Protecting your identity through adversarial attacks against unauthorized voice cloning. Three voices, three breakthroughs, one festival.

  
  

  Host: Pascal Hecker

  Post-Production: Paige Tuttösi, Pascal Hecker