Work trainer Speachme to open U.S. HQ in Austin

Hands-on knowledge collector lets users control content creation, share skills.

Speachme, a workplace training company, has chosen Austin as the headquarters for its U.S. operations, company executives said this week.

Speachme chose Austin over both Silicon Valley and New York because of Austin’s “central location and easy access to automotive and airline industries, food service, as well as manufacturing,” the company said in a news release.

The company, founded in France two years ago, has customers such as Tesla, Airbus, Nissan and Coca-Cola. Speachme has also secured $2.2 million in funding to expand in the U.S., and plan to hire six employees in the next 10 months. The company also plan to transfer two employees from San Francisco to Austin. Speachme has 41 employees worldwide.

Speachme is a technology platform that captures the 70 percent of workplace learning that typically comes from hands-on experience for knowledge sharing, the company says.

Its platform focuses on letting users control content creation and share technical skills and physical gestures. “The innovation and unique needs of the manufacturing and industrial business sectors are the primary driver for the expansion of our operations,” said Speachme CEO Najette Fellache.

Fellache said moving the company’s U.S. headquarters to Austin is a strategic move.

“The city has long been a center of innovation and often breaks with convention,” Fellache said. “We share this DNA and look forward to contributing to the thriving local business community.”

Speachme’s target customers include major brands in the automotive and airline industries. Currently, Speachme has more than 500,000 users across three continents.