Meta Platforms Inc. has acquired PlayAI, a California-based voice AI company founded by Egyptian engineers Mahmoud Felfel and Hammad Syed. The acquisition aims to enhance Meta’s capabilities in generative AI, particularly in developing natural and expressive voice interfaces.
PlayAI is recognized for its Play Dialog, a multi-turn speech model trained on hundreds of millions of conversations, enabling it to understand context and convey nuanced emotions. The startup also developed Play 3.0 mini, a fast, multilingual real-time text-to-speech model, and a no-code platform for building voice agents.
The financial terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed. The entire PlayAI team will join Meta’s AI division, reporting directly to leadership responsible for Meta AI, AI characters, wearables, and audio content creation.
This acquisition reflects Meta’s strategic focus on integrating specialized startups to accelerate its product roadmap, particularly in voice-driven AI technologies. It also highlights the growing recognition of talent and innovation emerging from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in the global tech industry.
PlayAI’s founders, Felfel and Syed, previously worked together as software engineers at the Dubai-based classifieds platform Dubizzle before establishing the startup in the United States. Their work addresses challenges in regional voice technology, aiming to create solutions with global applications.
The acquisition is seen as a significant milestone for the MENA tech ecosystem, marking one of the first AI startups from the region to be acquired by a major tech company. It underscores the potential for local innovations to contribute to global technological advancements.
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