Preasráiteas: Os cionn €2 milliún ceadaithe ag an Aire Calleary don tionscadal ABAIR, Scoil na nEolaíochtaí Teangeolaíochta, Urlabhra agus Cumarsáide i gColáiste na Tríonóide
Minister Calleary approves over €2 million for ABAIR project, School of Linguistic, Speech and Communication Sciences of Trinity College Dublin
- Cutting-edge AI speech and language technologies for the Irish language (speech recognition – ASR & text-to-speech – TTS)
- Robust APIs under construction – supporting public services, education, and accessibility solutions
- Irish-appropriate speech-based Large Language Models (LLMs) under development
- Minister launches next-generation synthetic voices (abair.ie) and the new ‘Fotheidil’ platform (fotheidil.abair.ie)
Today, Tuesday, 9 December 2025, at an event in Trinity College Dublin, the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, Dara Calleary TD, announced over €2 million, over a five-year period, for the ABAIR project in the University’s Phonetics and Speech Laboratory. ABAIR focuses on developing a range of speech technologies and language facilities, and providing them to the Irish-speaking community.
The ABAIR.ie website provides educational facilities for Irish language teachers and learners. ABAIR voices and linguistic technologies are used for the acquisition of speech, writing, listening and reading skills.
Minister Calleary congratulated the team at the Phonetics and Speech Laboratory of Trinity for the ambitious and forward-thinking work they are undertaking, and said:
“Irish-language technology and resources are vital for ensuring that the language benefits from the possibilities created by technologies for people who wish to learn and use the language in every area of their lives. The core speech and language systems being developed by ABAIR are especially important, and they will enable us to provide bilingual services to public bodies, to the education sector and to the accessibility sector.”
Speaking about the new funding for ABAIR, the Provost of Trinity Prof. Linda Doyle, said:
“It is fantastic to see this announcement of funding for the ABAIR IV initiative from the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht.
“This funding acknowledges the important and pioneering work being carried out by the ABAIR research team to develop state-of-the-art AI technologies for the Irish language. Fusing technology and Irish language linguistics, this interdisciplinary team is producing advanced technologies, which are faithful to the structure of the language, to the native dialects and to the needs of a host of different end users.”
In recent years, the ABAIR team has developed facilities for people with disabilities and people with learning difficulties, such as Geabaire – an AAC communications system (with spoken output) for those without speech, which is currently needed for autistic children; and a screenreader for those without sight.
At the event in Trinity, Minister Calleary also launched two new speech technologies developed by ABAIR:
New synthetic ABAIR voices:
- Na Déise, Waterford, voice
- Gaoth Dobhair, Donegal, voice (male)
Fotheidil:
- A platform to auto-transcribe audio and/or video files. It uses the speech recognition system ABAIR-ÉIST.
Over the next five years, ABAIR will focus on additional developments in speech and language technologies for the Irish language, as well as developing native Large Language Models.
Os cionn €2 milliún ceadaithe ag an Aire Calleary don tionscadal ABAIR, Scoil na nEolaíochtaí Teangeolaíochta, Urlabhra agus Cumarsáide i gColáiste na Tríonóide
- Teicneolaíochtaí AI urlabhra agus teanga don Ghaeilge (ASR, TTS) ar an gcaighdeán is airde á bhforbairt
- Comhéadain feidhmchláir (APInna) láidre á dtógáil – ag tacú le seirbhísí poiblí, earnáil an oideachais, agus earnáil na hinrochtaineachta
- Tús curtha le mórshamhlacha urlabhra-bhunaithe teanga (LLManna) a thógáil don Ghaeilge
- Guthanna sintéiseacha nua (abair.ie) agus ardán nua ‘Fotheidil’ seolta ag an Aire (fotheidil.abair.ie)
Inniu, Dé Máirt, 9 Nollaig 2025 ag ócáid i gColáiste na Tríonóide, Baile Átha Cliath d’fhógair an tAire Forbartha Tuaithe agus Pobail agus Gaeltachta, Dara Calleary TD, os cionn €2 milliún, thar thréimhse chúig bliana, don tionscadal ABAIR sa tSaotharlann Foghraíochta agus Urlabhra san Ollscoil. Tá ABAIR dírithe ar réimse teicneolaíochtaí urlabhra agus áiseanna teanga a fhorbairt agus a chur ar fáil do phobal na Gaeilge.
Cuireann suíomh gréasáin ABAIR.ie áiseanna oideachais ar fáil do mhúinteoirí agus d’fhoghlaimeoirí Gaeilge. Baintear úsáid as guthanna ABAIR agus acmhainní teangeolaíochta do shealbhú scileanna labhartha, scríofa, éisteachta agus léitheoireachta.
Thréaslaigh an tAire Calleary le foireann na Saotharlainne Foghraíochta agus Urlabhra i gColáiste na Trionóide as an obair thionscantach atá idir lamha acu, agus dúirt:
“Tá teicneolaíocht agus acmhainní teanga Gaeilge ríthábhachtach lena chinntiú go mbainfidh an teanga tairbhe as an bhféidearthacht a chruthaíonn na teicneolaíochtaí do dhaoine agus iad ag iarraidh an teanga a úsáid agus a fhoghlaim i ngach réimse dá saol. Tá tábhacht faoi leith leis na bunchórais urlabhra agus teanga atá á bhforbairt ag ABAIR, a chuirfidh ar ár gcumas seirbhísí dátheangacha a chur ar fáil do chomhlachtaí poiblí, in earnáil an oideachais, agus in earnáil na hinrochtaineachta”
Ag labhairt di faoin maoiniú nua i gcomhair Abair, dúirt Propast Choláiste na Tríonóide, an tOllamh Linda Doyle:
“Is iontach an fógra seo maidir le maoiniú don tionscnamh ABAIR IV ón Roinn Forbartha Tuaithe agus Pobail agus Gaeltachta a fheiceáil.
“Tugann an maoiniú seo aitheantas don obair thábhachtach agus cheannródaíoch atá ar bun ag foireann taighde ABAIR chun teicneolaíochtaí IS den chéad scoth a fhorbairt don Gaeilge. Trí theicneolaíocht agus teangeolaíocht na Gaeilge a chumasc, tá an fhoireann idirdhisciplíneach seo ag táirgeadh teicneolaíochtaí ardleibhéil atá dílis do struchtúr na teanga, do na canúintí dúchais agus do riachtanais ilghnéitheacha úsáideoirí deiridh.”
Le blianta beaga anuas, tá forbairt déanta ag foireann ABAIR ar áiseanna do dhaoine atá faoi mhíchumas agus daoine a bhfuil deacrachtaí foghlama acu, leithéid Geabaire – córas cumarsáide AAC (le haschur cainte) dóibh siúd gan urlabhra, atá faoi láthair á thástáil le páistí uathacha; agus léitheoir gréasáin dóibh siúd gan radharc.
Ag an ócáid i gColáiste na Tríonóide, sheol an tAire Calleary freisin dhá theicneolaíochtaí urlabhra nua atá forbartha ag ABAIR:
Guthanna sintéiseacha nua ABAIR:
- Glór na nDéise
- Glór (fireann) Ghaoth Dobhair
Fotheidil:
- Ardán le tras-scríobh uathoibríoch a dhéanamh ar chóid fuaime agus/nó físeáin. Baineann sé úsáid as córas aitheanta cainte ABAIR-ÉIST.
Sa tréimhse cúig bliana amach romhainn, díreoidh ABAIR ar fhorbairtí breise sna teicneolaíochtaí urlabhra agus teanga don Ghaeilge mar aon le mórshamhlacha teanga dúchasacha a fhorbairt.