VNExpress-Feb 14
Vietnamese entrepreneur Van Dinh Hong Vu co-founded Elsa, an AI-powered English learning app that has helped millions worldwide improve their pronunciation and communication skills. In January she was recognized as a Technology Pioneer at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, among 200 startup founders leading innovations in their fields. Over nearly a decade Elsa (English Language Speech Assistant) has become one of the most widely used English-learning tools with over 50 million users globally. Apple recently featured Elsa in its New Year 2025 highlights on Vietnam’s App Store, describing it as a prime example of AI-driven education. “Elsa Speak employs a custom-built AI model to analyze users’ pronunciation at the syllable level, providing detailed feedback and improvement suggestions.” Despite excelling in English during her school years, she struggled with communication when she first studied abroad. She found that a lack of access to native speakers and real-time feedback made pronunciation difficult to refine. “For this challenge, technology is the only solution,” she says. When Elsa was first developed in 2015, AI was not yet widely applied in language learning, and was primarily used in virtual assistants. Initially the team considered Google’s speech recognition API, but it was designed to interpret commands despite errors, making it unsuitable for pronunciation training. Vu then partnered with Dr. Xavier Anguera, an expert in speech recognition and AI, to create a proprietary system. Using deep learning, it could detect even subtle pronunciation mistakes with over 95% accuracy. The team later introduced Speech Analyzer, a tool offering real-time feedback and detailed corrections. As generative AI gained traction in late 2022, Elsa launched Elsa AI, a feature allowing users to engage in personalized simulated conversations. “Learners can practice real-life dialogues tailored to their specific needs, whether for work or daily life,” Vu says. Read more at:
