Restoring the Voices of Patients with ALS
For Mike G.–a retired police officer, criminal justice professor, and youth sports coach–communication was always at the heart of his life. But when he was diagnosed with ALS three years ago, he faced a heartbreaking reality—losing his ability to speak. The progression of his disease, which included bulbar symptoms affecting speech, made it increasingly difficult to connect with loved ones.
Through Bridging Voice, a nonprofit dedicated to helping ALS patients regain their voices, Mike was introduced to AudioShake. With a collection of stored videos taken before his diagnosis, AudioShake’s advanced sound separation technology was able to isolate his voice, removing background noise and other distractions. These clean voice samples became the foundation for Eleven Labs to create an authentic voice clone—one that allowed Michael to speak again in his own voice.
“Not until I was diagnosed with ALS 3 years ago, the form of ALS to include bulbar symptoms, did I realize just how much I took for granted the ability to speak and communicate clearly and effectively. Moreover, having two young granddaughters, who are my world and were too young to recall how ‘Papa’ used to talk to them, did I realize just how much AudioShake would mean to me as my disease worsens.”
AudioShake’s voice isolation technology played a crucial role in making this possible. For many people, the only available recordings of their voice are buried in noisy environments—family gatherings, phone calls, or old home videos. Traditionally, this background noise makes it difficult to extract a clean sample suitable for voice cloning. However, with AudioShake’s AI-powered separation, even complex recordings can be broken down into individual tracks, isolating speech with incredible clarity. This provided Bridging Voice and Eleven Labs with high-quality speech tracks to reconstruct Mike’s into a personalized voice clone.
Now, Mike is using his voice clone to communicate not only with his granddaughters but with everyone around him. Whether it’s having conversations with loved ones or simply expressing himself in a way that feels true to his identity, this technology has given him back a fundamental part of himself.
“I was able to provide a series of stored videos taken of me prior to ALS, and they were able to sift through background noises and create my vocabulary enabling me to once again speak to my granddaughters, and anyone else, as I once did, in my "own" voice; provided by ElevenLabs. It's been liberating and I look forward to additional ways that AudioShake can help me feel "normal" again.”
Mike’s story is just one example of how AI is transforming accessibility and communication for individuals with speech impairments. The collaboration between Bridging Voice, AudioShake, and Eleven Labs showcases how as these technologies continue to evolve, they hold immense potential for improving accessibility across healthcare, education, and communication tools.