Project Details

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TalkingSick: Exploring Respiratory and Sleep-Related Health Diversity through Voice Biomarkers

Company: PSU Cocoziello Institute of Real Estate Innovation 1

Major(s):
Primary: CMPSC
Secondary: BME

Non-Disclosure Agreement: NO

Intellectual Property: NO

Researchers at Penn State have developed TalkingSick, a voice-based pre-screening platform for airborne diseases such as influenza, RSV, and COVID-19. Using AI/ML applied to short scripted voice recordings, the system aims to detect early signs of respiratory illness rapidly, non-invasively, and at scale through everyday devices (phones, wearables, smart speakers). The goal is to provide an accessible, cost-efficient, and equitable tool that enables universities, healthcare providers, and employers to identify emerging risks sooner and respond more effectively. For this project, we plan to integrate TalkingSick into de-identified pipelines and protocols that allow PSU faculty, staff, and students (via PSU SSO) to upload audio samples and receive a model-generated probability of being sick. All uploads will remain anonymous and stored securely in PSU-controlled storage, with audio files automatically removed 30+ days after submission. This project is sponsored by the Penn State Cocoziello Institute of Real Estate Innovation.