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What is the goal of Apple’s “Saylists” project?

Answer: To use music to help people with speech impairments.

Apple headphones resting on an iPhone.
Shutterstock/blackzheep
Apple is creating music playlists specifically designed to help people with speech-sound disorders (SSDs). The project, called “Saylists,” is being done in collaboration with Warner Music and already has 173 tracks.

The playlists are designed for people who have stutters and those who struggle to pronounce certain sounds, such as “ch” or “f.” The songs are chosen by an algorithm, which analyzes songs and chooses ones that repeat the difficult sounds most often. Some of the tracks include “Good as Hell” by Lizzo, Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now” and “Right Here, Right Now” by Fatboy Slim.

Speech and language therapist Anna Biavati-Smith, who worked with Warner Music for the project, said Saylists “provide a fun new way to practise the sounds I teach children, without feeling pressured or getting bored.”