Pierre Lemaire’s old recordings gave him a voice for three new talks

Pierre Lemaire already had talks to give. Invited back to a geriatrics congress in Tunisia in early 2026, he agreed to prepare three presentations. After a laryngectomy, he initially chose a standard synthetic voice to deliver them, according to Acapela’s account published in July.[1]

His earlier work offered another route. As a physician, teacher and broadcaster, he had accumulated recordings. Acapela used those archives to construct a personalised voice with My-Own-Voice, its speech-synthesis service. The company says the resulting voice was used for the three presentations.[1]

Existing recordings must be of sufficient quality, the account says. Material made for audiences and students had become the source for Lemaire’s own communication.[1]

A voice for words still to come

My-Own-Voice is a text-to-speech service. The regular recording route asks for 50 sentences to create a synthetic voice; a completed voice can then read text entered into a type-and-talk box on the website. A user can try the voice there before choosing a compatible application.[2]

That changes what a recording can preserve. Playing an audio file repeats words already spoken. A synthetic voice can give sound to newly written words, so the recording becomes material for future communication. The service’s preview gives its user a chance to judge whether that new output sounds suitable.[2]

The MND Association’s general voice-banking guidance also identifies earlier recordings as a possible starting point. Its wider advice connects a voice with the equipment a person can use: speech and language therapists assess communication needs, while occupational therapists can help with ways to access a computer.[3]

Acapela quotes Lemaire’s description: “I no longer speak with my vocal cords, but I can once again speak with my voice.”[1]

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