News Summary:
- Intent to acquire BabbleLabs’ noise removal and speech enhancement technology furthers Cisco’s commitment to deliver an exceptional video meeting experience from anywhere and on any device through the Webex application.
- Acquisition builds upon a focused technology and talent strategy to continue to integrate intelligence into the Cisco Collaboration platform – helping users work smarter and be more productive.
- Promotes Customer Privacy and Cloud Security by processing noise removal 100 percent at the source where the noise happens (on the client side), aligning with Cisco’s culture of security by design.
【Taiwan – August 27,
2020】— Work is what you do, not
where you go. With this reality, unwanted background noise has become one of
the most common and frustrating distractions in today’s work environment. To
help users control unwanted noise in meetings--be it from barking dogs, lawn
mowers, a car alarm or sirens - Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) today announced its intent
to acquire privately held BabbleLabs, Inc. headquartered in Campbell, CA.
BabbleLabs
uses advanced AI (Artificial Intelligence) techniques to distinguish human
speech from unwanted noise, enhancing the quality of communications and
conferencing applications. BabbleLabs goes beyond existing noise suppression technology
solutions by:
· Distinguishing speech from background noise;
· Removing background noise in real-time; and
· Enhancing the voice to elevate communication, regardless of language.
According to a Cisco
global survey* focused on the future of work, 98 percent of workers say they
experience frustration from distractions during video meetings when working
from home. Two of the top 5 frustrations called out are about background
noise—either from other participants or their own side of the call.
With the addition of
BabbleLabs, Cisco will bring native noise removal capability to its entire
Collaboration portfolio. Initially, Cisco will focus on integrating BabbleLabs
to deliver a best-in-class audio experience to Webex Meetings users - wherever
they are and however they connect via the Webex application (whether via a
conference room or mobile device). A great user experience is also a secure
user experience. BabbleLabs complements Cisco’s focus on secure and private
collaboration by processing noise removal 100 percent at the source where the
noise happens (on the client side). In doing so, BabbleLabs aligns to strict
data policies that underpin Cisco’s culture of security by design.
“A great meeting
experience starts with great audio,” said Jeetu Patel, senior vice president
and general manager, Cisco Security and Applications Business Unit. “We’re
thrilled to welcome BabbleLabs’ team of highly skilled engineers. Their
technology is going to provide our customers with yet another important innovation
– automatically removing unwanted noise - to continue enabling exceptional
Webex meeting experiences.”
“BabbleLabs is excited
to become part of Cisco and the Collaboration Group,” said Chris Rowen, CEO and
co-founder of BabbleLabs. “The Cisco team shares our passion about speech as
the core of collaboration and communication. Cisco’s Collaboration platform
will enable us to quickly scale our exceptional speech enhancement technology
for the hundreds of millions of Webex users.”
Key Facts:
· The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of Cisco’s
FY21, subject to customary closing conditions and required regulatory
approvals.
Upon completion of the transaction, the BabbleLabs team will join the
Cisco Collaboration Group, led by Javed Khan, senior vice president and general
manager, which is part of the Cisco Security and Applications Business, led by
Jeetu Patel.
· Cisco Collaboration is trusted by 95 percent of the Fortune 500.
The BabbleLabs
acquisition builds on Cisco’s investments in AI technology and talent over the
last three years - all designed to make collaboration more intelligent, secure,
effective and productive. Cisco is uniquely focused on every phase of work and
meetings. This includes: before meetings by serving insights into people
attending the meeting, or being able to see who’s on before you join and more;
during meetings through optimized audio and video, blurred or custom background
across any OS, touchless sharing of ideas and files, automated note taking,
live transcription, and more; as well as after meetings by automatically
sending meeting notes with spoken action items.
Additional Resources
·
For more details, read the blog from Cisco
Collaboration Group leader, Javed Khan.
·
Read the blog from BabbleLabs
Co-Founder and CEO Chris Rowen.
·
For more information on Cisco Webex visit https://www.webex.com/.
* Soon to be released,
this survey covers the changing working environment as a result of COVID 19. In
July 2020 we surveyed 1,569 qualified participants globally—knowledge workers,
IT, HR and facilities professionals at small to larger enterprise companies
representing all seniority levels. China, APAC, EMEA, and North America.