The revolutionary avatar was designed by NHK Enterprises
Inc. and NHK Global Media Services, a division of Japan's Public Broadcaster, in collaboration
with global marketing company Media.Monks
NEW
YORK, May 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- S4Capital's
operating brand Media.Monks, a digital-first marketing and
advertising services company, partnered with NHK Enterprises Inc.
and NHK Global Media Services, a division of Japan's Public Broadcaster, to create the
world's first text-to-sign translation engine for emergency alerts.
KIKI is a lifelike virtual avatar designed to generate dynamic
Japanese Sign Language (JSL) interpretations from text inputs for
public distribution in real-time. KIKI generates JSL disaster
messaging for the Deaf community in less than 10 seconds, taking
into account the language's unique syntax, the importance of
pausing, and the evocation of emotion not conveyed through closed
captions.
There are more than 300,000 people in the Deaf community in
Japan, a region with one of the
highest earthquake risks in the world. Closed captioning on
emergency alerts doesn't capture the same meaning, word order, or
emotion for those who communicate primarily through sign language.
For the Deaf community, transcribed spoken word is an entirely
different language than sign language. During an emergency, closed
captioning alone requires them to translate an entirely different
language as they read the alert. That's why NHK Enterprises Inc.
and NHK Global Media Services sought to address this lack of
accessibility and linguistic diversity during emergency alerts in
Japan.
In collaboration with JSL experts, including professors
from Tsukuba University of Technology,
NHK Enterprises Inc. and NHK Global Media Services built an
extensive database of JSL signs through motion capture technology
with unprecedented accuracy and realism.
Media.Monks brought KIKI to life through advanced 3D technology,
giving her natural human characteristics and a personality to
enhance the experience with lifelike quality and resolution that
fosters trust and inclusivity. From there, Media.Monks designed a
cutting-edge web platform to dynamically translate plain text into
expressive, lifelike sign language videos delivered in real-time
through KIKI's hyper-realistic personality.
During the January 1, 2024, 7.6
magnitude earthquake in Japan, the
innovative system developed by Media.Monks communicated
life-saving emergency alerts in JSL across the region, enhancing
accessibility and inclusivity on a wide scale. In Spring 2025, KIKI
will become the first ambassador at Tokyo's Deaflympics.
Future iterations of KIKI could leverage artificial
intelligence and machine learning to capture sign language more
efficiently and reduce costs, allowing further adoption and driving
accessibility on an even greater scale. Through the power of AI and
machine learning, KIKI can be trained in other sign languages,
including American Sign Language and European Sign Language, with
unparalleled speed and efficiency, opening doors for global
impact.
"KIKI underscores NHK's commitment to inclusivity by showcasing
how creativity, technology, and social responsibility converge to
address real-world challenges." said Takashi Koyano, Corporate
Officer Digital Solution Center at NHK Enterprises Inc. "Part of
our ongoing mission to create a more inclusive and accessible
world, KIKI represents a new era in digital innovation to reshape
human connection with transformative impact. We are thrilled to
partner with Media.Monks on the world's first text-to-sign engine,
and bring the conversation around sign inclusivity to the forefront
of the broadcast industry in a way we never thought possible
before."
"KIKI stands at the forefront of accessibility innovation at
scale" said Jordan Cuddy, EVP,
Global Head of Experience at Media.Monks. "We are proud to partner
with NHK to develop KIKI, a beacon for future innovation that
proves how technology can bridge communication gaps and enhance
accessibility for traditionally underserved communities. We are
committed to pushing the boundaries of what is possible with
technology, and in developing KIKI that mission was even more
meaningful because we addressed a complex societal challenge."
About Media.Monks
Media.Monks is the global, purely
digital, unitary operating brand of S4Capital plc. Since 2021,
Media.Monks has combined diverse solutions—media, data, social,
platforms, studio, experience, brand and technology services—to
serve as a consultative partner integrating systems and workflows
that deliver unfettered content production, scaled experiences and
data science fueled by AI and the industry's very best talent and
teams.
Media.Monks was named a Contender in The Forrester
Wave™: Global Marketing Services. It has earned a
constant presence on Adweek's Fastest Growing lists (2019-23),
ranks among Cannes Lions' Top 10 Creative Companies (2022-23), and
earns continual inclusion in AdExchanger's Programmatic Power
Players (2020-23). It has also been named Adweek's first AI Agency
of the Year (2023). Business Intelligence has recognized
Media.Monks in its 2024 Excellence in Artificial Intelligence
Awards program in three categories: the Individual category,
Organizational Winner in AI Strategic Planning, and AI Product for
its service Monks.Flow. Media.Monks has earned the title of Webby
Production Company of the Year (2021-23), won a record number of
FWAs, and a spot on Newsweek's Top 100 Global Most Loved Workplaces
2023.
About S4Capital
S4Capital plc (SFOR.L) is the
tech-led, new age/new era digital advertising, marketing and
technology services company, established by Sir Martin Sorrell in May
2018.
Our strategy is to build a purely digital advertising and
marketing services business for global, multinational, regional,
and local clients, and millennial-driven influencer brands. This
will be achieved by integrating leading businesses in three
practices: Content, Data&digital Media and Technology Services,
along with an emphasis on 'faster, better, cheaper, more' execution
in an always-on consumer-led environment, with a unitary
structure.
The S4Capital Board includes Rupert
Faure Walker, Paul Roy,
Daniel Pinto, Sue Prevezer,
Elizabeth Buchanan, Naoko Okumoto, Margaret
Ma Connolly, Miles Young and
Colin Day as Non-Executive
Directors.
The Company now has approximately 7,600 people in 32 countries
with approximately 80% of net revenue across the Americas, 15%
across Europe, the Middle East and Africa and 5% across Asia-Pacific. The longer-term objective is a
geographic split of 60%:20%:20%. Content currently accounts for
approximately 60% of net revenue, Data&digital Media 25% and
Technology Services 15%. The long-term objective for the practices
is a split of 50%:25%:25%.
Sir Martin was CEO of WPP for 33 years, building it from a
£1 million 'shell' company in 1985 into the world's largest
advertising and marketing services company, with a market
capitalisation of over £16 billion on the day he left. Prior to
that Sir Martin was Group Financial Director of Saatchi &
Saatchi Company Plc for nine years.
Media Contact:
Sarah Murray, 402-658-9341
sarah.murray@mediamonks.com
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SOURCE Media.Monks