Cloud-based assistive technology that aids people with Dyslexia, ADHD launches

A new start-up Peer has officially launched in Ireland. Peer is a cloud-based assistive technology that provides the latest developments in both text-to-speech and speech-to-text for people with Dyslexia, ADHD and other reading abilities. Peer aids reading, writing and document creation in a safe and secure workspace that is available on any device via a web browser. Peer is offering a 7-day free trial on their website, www.peer.ie.

Peer developed from founder Graham Brocklebank’s first-hand experience as a person with severe Dyslexia. When Graham went back to study Computer Science as a mature student, he “noticed almost right away that the assistive technologies (AT) available to me as a person with Dyslexia were the same AT given to me over 10 years previously, with almost no innovation or improvements to the user experience, making them very difficult to use”.

According to the Dyslexia Association of Ireland, and the International Dyslexia Association, Dyslexia affects approximately one in ten people in education and is one of the most common learning difficulties. It affects and makes it harder for people to learn, read, write or spell. Peer’s goal is to remove these barriers for people with Dyslexia in education and the workplace.

After two years of research on Dyslexia in secondary schools, 3rd level education and the workplace, we have identified the user pain points common across all three areas in 2nd, 3rd level education and the workplace. From this research, we developed our prototype and tested it with our users.

One of the things that makes Peer so unique is that it requires almost no training on how to use – this frees up resources in education and allows the user to start benefitting immediately.

Peer participated in the New Frontiers Programme in TU Dublin Blanchardstown, European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Health in Trinity College Dublin, and has won awards from Irelands Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) in Fingal and the Responsible Innovation Summit (RSI) for social impact.

Peer has already secured early-stage funding from The Bolton Trust and Enterprise Ireland’s Competitive Start Fund and is beginning its seed round in the upcoming months.

“As a person with Dyslexia, learning and supporting different types of learners is something I am very passionate about. Unfortunately, people with Dyslexia can often fall behind because their Dyslexia reduces their confidence in learning and in the workplace.

Associated stress and anxiety can result in education dropout, and deter people from going for promotions at work. Peer’s mission is to change how information is delivered to people with Dyslexia, by exploiting the natural inherent strengths people with Dyslexia have”.

“This is a very exciting time for us as we get to show our customers and users what we have been working on. In the coming months, we will be expanding on the foundations of Peer, and will be building our team, hiring key people so we can scale up Peer into the rest of the EU”. For more information about Peer please visit www.peer.ie.