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Fleksy
View on Wikipedia | This article contains promotional content. (December 2024) |
| Fleksy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Original author | ThingThing Ltd. |
| Initial release | December 2012 |
| Operating system | iOS Android Linux Unity |
| Type | Virtual keyboard |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | www |
Fleksy is a third-party, proprietary virtual keyboard app for Android and iOS devices. It attempts to improve traditional typing speed and accuracy through enhanced auto-correction and gesture controls. Fleksy uses error-correcting algorithms that analyze the region where the user touches the keyboard and feeds this through a language model, which calculates and identifies the intended word. Swiping gestures are used to control common functions, such as space, delete, and word correction.
Fleksy has introduced Fleksyapps,[1] which are mini-programs and Fleksynext,[2] its Smart Assistant that utilizes artificial intelligence capable of understanding intent, sentiment and context while typing.[3]
In addition, Fleksy has released various Software Development Kits, including their Virtual Keyboard SDK and Predictive Text SDK, and In-App Keyboard SDK. This is in line with the app's stated mission to "democratize access to language input technologies."[4]
History
[edit] | This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: There is no information beyond 2021.. (October 2022) |
Fleksy was developed by Fleksy Inc., a company founded in 2011.[4] It was originally developed for the blind and visually impaired to enable typing through muscle memory.[5]
In July 2012, Fleksy became commercially available on the iPhone as a download from Apple's iOS App Store.[6] On June 15, 2016, the company moved on to Pinterest.[7] As of 2018, Fleksy was acquired by Spain-based digital marketing company ThingThing Ltd.[8]
In the summer of 2018, Fleksy opened a seed crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube.[9] Later, in October of the same year, Fleksy partnered with Palm and was preinstalled as the default keyboard on all Palm devices.[10]
Fleksy introduced Fleksyapps "mini app programs" in early 2019.[11] Two months later, Fleksy released its smart assistant, Fleksynext.[2] In October 2019, Fleksy's PEGI rating was changed to PEGI12 on Google Play. The app's PEGI 3 rating was later restored after the company contacted the International Age Rating Coalition.[12]
In 2019, Fleksy became the first keyboard used for Passive Digital Phenotyping in the Healthcare space. The next year, Fleksy would pivot business towards a B2B model, launching its Software Development Kit (SDK) and taking on clients in Healthcare, Productivity, Generative AI, Augmented Reality, Advertising, Banking and many more.
In October 2021, Fleksy announced it had raised a Series A from Inveready, and, in August 2022, the company launched its Developer Platform and Integration Documentation.[13]
As of February 2024, the company has begun to expand into Field Mobility (Logistics) and Cybersecurity, following a grant from Innovate UK to Combat Financial Fraud on Mobile.[14]
Software
[edit]Fleksy’s auto-correct algorithm functions through a combination of analysis of user typing patterns and linguistic context. Analysis of tap locations (rather than letters selected) affords it the ability to remain tolerant of drifting errors and allows the user to type on an invisible keyboard or even off the keyboard in some instances.[15] As a result, Fleksy has been embraced by the visually-impaired community.[16][17][18][19] The software has been considered for the "Story of the Year" of the Technology Year in Review for 2012 by the American Foundation for the Blind.[5]
Fleksy allows sighted people to blind-type on a touchscreen.[20] Quentin Stafford-Fraser said on his website: "I found I could type whole sentences immediately, without looking at the keyboard".[20]
Availability
[edit]Fleksy is available in 82 languages[21] and QWERTY, AZERTY, QWERTZ, Dvorak, and Colemak layouts on Android and iOS. The Fleksy SDK provides autocorrection, next word prediction and swipe input.
Awards
[edit]Fleksy has received a number of awards since its release in July 2012:
- Officially broke Guinness World Record for fastest touch-screen text message in May 2014[22]
- South by Southwest Interactive Accelerator 2013 Winner[23]
- Apple's Best of App Store 2012[24]
- CES 2013 Innovation honoree[25]
- Qualcomm QPrize finalist[26]
- Royal National Institute of Blind People, app of the month for August 2012[27]
- Golden Apple Award[28]
References
[edit]- ^ Fleksy (2019-02-12). "Tired of switching between apps?". Medium.
- ^ a b Fleksy (2019-04-29). "How We Built a Privacy-Focused AI". Medium.
- ^ "Fleksy's AI keyboard is getting a store to put mini apps at chatters' fingertips". TechCrunch. 2019-04-03.
- ^ a b "Fleksy", fleksy.com, Retrieved on 7 February 2013.
- ^ a b "2012: A Technology Year in Review" AFB AccessWorld, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Fleksy - Happy Typing" iOS App Store. Retrieved on 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Fleksy Acquired by Pinterest". fleksy.com. Archived from the original on 2016-09-20. Retrieved 2016-06-15.
- ^ "Fleksy gets major robot under ThingThing". TechCrunch. 2017-07-25.
- ^ "Fleksy Keyboard is raising £230,000 investment on Crowdcube. Capital At Risk". Crowdcube. Archived from the original on 2021-03-05. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
- ^ "Fleksy's keyboard grabs $800k+ via equity crowdfunding". TechCrunch. 2018-10-25.
- ^ Fleksy (2019-02-12). "Tired of switching between apps?". Medium.
- ^ "Google's Play Store is giving an age-rating finger to Fleksy, a Gboard rival 🖕". TechCrunch. 23 October 2019. Retrieved 2019-10-27.
- ^ Lomas, Natasha (2022-08-30). "Fleksy targets devs with SDK platform for smart keyboard features". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ Plante, Olivier (2024-01-03). "Blog - Fleksy Granted Innovate UK Funding to Combat Financial Fraud on Mobile". Fleksy. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ "Hacker News" news.ycombinator.com, Retrieved on 23 August 2012.
- ^ "An App for Wayward Fingers and Thumbs: An Evaluation of the Fleksy App from Syntellia" AFB AccessWorld, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Fleksy Gives Blind iOS Users Top-Speed Typing Access" Archived 2013-01-15 at the Wayback Machine About.com, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Mistype Every Letter & Fleksy Still Knows What Keys You Meant" Archived 2013-01-14 at the Wayback Machine About.com, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Fleksy app: Helping you to type faster" Archived 2013-12-06 at the Wayback Machine Royal National Institute for the Blind, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ a b "Being Accessible | Status-Q". Retrieved 2022-10-31.
- ^ Fleksy (20 September 2016). "What languages does Fleksy support?". Zendesk.
- ^ "Fastest touch-screen text message record officially broken with Fleksy keyboard". Guinness World Records. 2014-05-19.
- ^ " SXSW, Retrieved 30 March 2013.
- ^ "Fleksy typing app gets main stream recognition in the Apple Australian App Store" [sic] Vision Australia, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "CES Innovation Awards" Archived 2013-02-09 at the Wayback Machine CES, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Qualcomm Press Release" Qualcomm, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Fleksy - App of the Month August 2012" Archived 2012-09-17 at the Wayback Machine Royal National Institute of the Blind, Retrieved 7 February 2013.
- ^ "Announcing the AppleVis Golden Apples of 2012" AppleVis, Retrieved 7 February 2013.