ApplyAI: Generating voices & GPT-NL

Whether you work in Data & AI as engineer or researcher, or are just passionate about the topic, join us this April for the first ever ApplyAI event in our Zeist-based office! We have invited two exciting speakers that will talk about language: Saskia Lensink (Researcher Language and Speech Technologies at TNO) and Jaebok Kim (Head of Research and Development at ReadSpeaker). The event starts with dinner and ends with a networking borrel.
With this event we want to build a network that meets up quarterly to talk about recent trends in AI. We focus on the practical application of the technologies that AI has to offer. Topics that we like to discuss range from AI technologies (Conversational AI, NLP, Information Retrieval, Knowledge Graphs, Language Models) to implementation (MLOps, Data Lakes, Kubernetes, Cloud).

Talk #1 by Saskia Lensink: Training GPT-NL
Saskia works as Researcher Language and Speech Technologies at TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research) and leads the Data and AI technologies Task Force at BDVA (Big Data Value Association). She is the product owner of GPT-NL, a project led by TNO, NFI and SURF that recently received €14mln in funding to build an open-source Large Language Model for the Dutch language.

Talk #2 by Jaebok Kim: Generating voices
Jaebok is the Head of Research and Development of ReadSpeaker. ReadSpeaker creates life-like synthetic voices for clients like Spotify and Sonos. They develop state-of-the-art text-to-speech models, experimenting with approaches like multi-lingual models.
Jaebok will talk us through the state-of-the-art of open-source text-to-speech models, and then dive into the latest developments of the models trained by ReadSpeaker. He will introduce us to the similarities and differences of training generative text-to-speech models as opposed to large language models.

Agenda

• 17:30-18:30: Walk-in and dinner
• 18:30-19:00: Saskia Lensink about training GPT-NL
• 19:00-19:10: Break
• 19:10-19:40: Jaebok Kim about generating voices
• 19:40-20:30: Borrel

Public transport and parking
The office is at walking distance from train station Driebergen-Zeist, and there are multiple bus stops close by. There is parking under the building, you can ring the office at the entrance and we will open the gate for you. Alternatively you can park on the side of the road leading up to our office.