Rupal Patel is founder and CEO of VocaliD, a voice AI company that creates custom voices. VocaliD’s award-winning technology empowers individuals living with speechlessness to be heard as themselves and brings things-that-talk to life through its uniquely crafted vocal persona. Rupal is currently on leave from Northeastern University where she is a tenured professor in the Khoury College of Computer Sciences and the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. A native of Canada, she earned her bachelor’s degree from University of Calgary, her master’s and PhD from University of Toronto and completed post-doctoral training at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. One of Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative people in Business, Rupal has been featured on TED, NPR, and in major international news and technology publications.