Speak

Speak is an AI-powered language learning app focused on speaking practice, founded in 2016 and backed by SoftBank Vision Fund. Unlike text-heavy apps, Speak puts conversation first: you speak aloud, and Speak's AI gives you immediate pronunciation scoring, grammar corrections, and contextual feedback.

## What Makes Speak Different

**Speaking-first design** — Most language apps teach reading and listening. Speak requires you to actually speak. Its AI speech recognition assesses your pronunciation at the phoneme level, not just whether you were understood. You get a score and specific feedback on which sounds to improve.

**AI conversation partner** — Speak's AI tutor can hold freeform conversations in English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, and Korean. You choose a scenario (job interview, travel, small talk) and practice in context. The AI adapts difficulty to your level.

**Real-time feedback loops** — Corrections happen immediately after each utterance, not at the end of a session. This mirrors how human tutors teach and accelerates acquisition.

**Structured curriculum + open conversation** — Speak offers structured lessons with vocabulary and grammar explanations, but its differentiator is the unstructured AI conversation mode where you can talk about anything.

## Pricing and Availability

Speak is available on iOS and Android. It offers a freemium model with limited daily practice and a subscription tier (~$100–150/year) for unlimited access. The app is particularly popular in South Korea for English learning.