Still Life

A moment of levity: Penn State Lehigh Valley graduates celebrated with the Nittany Lion after commencement ceremonies, held May 5 at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa.

Commencement across Penn State: Spring 2012

New graduates of Penn State's Eberly College of Science listened to the commencement address provided by United States Secretary of Energy Steven Chu during spring 2012 graduation ceremonies held May 5 at the Bryce Jordan Center on the University Park campus.

Spring commencement 2012 under way

A Moroccan farmer taught Penn State students about the properties of vetiver grass, including its ability to clean wastewater. The grass could be used as part of a solution to water-quality problems being experienced in Assoul, Morocco, where students spent time recently.

Penn State, Moroccan students problem-solve together

Anjelica Fortunato, left, and Jeffrey Lu reviewed for their Anatomy 129 final exam on May 1 on the HUB-Robeson Center Lawn on Penn State's University Park campus. Penn State students are preparing for and taking final exams throughout the week as spring semester 2012 comes to a close.

Finals Week Spring Semester 2012

Denae Taylor, right, tried on some electrical-safety gear with the help of Joe Dinardo, Supervisor of Facilty Resources at Penn State, during Penn State's annual Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day on April 26. Denae is the granddaughter of Penn State Outreach employee Betty Lose, and attends Bellefonte Middle School.

Children explore career options at University Park

Featured Video

Painting the Lines at Beaver Stadium

Painting the Lines at Beaver Stadium

Did They Get It Right? - RedTails

Did They Get It Right? - RedTails

Iconic Penn State elm taken down over spring break 2012

Iconic Penn State elm taken down over spring break 2012

We ... are Penn State (December 19, 2011)

We ... are Penn State (December 19, 2011)

Disease stricken matching elm tree slated for removal

Disease stricken matching elm tree slated for removal

Penn State's creamery, from the cow to the cone

Penn State's creamery, from the cow to the cone

Updates:
Penn State Promise

Board of Trustees launches new website

Faculty Senate recaps 2011-12 activity for Board of Trustees

Frazier provides update on Special Investigations Task Force

Board of Trustees meeting to be streamed live

Penn State donates more than $2.6 million to abuse prevention efforts

Product developer for Blackberry, iPhone to kick off speaker series

Monday, September 21, 2009

Igor Jablokov, CEO of Yap, Inc., a company specializing in audio-to-text conversions, will be the first speaker for the Norbert and Audrey Gaelen Entrepreneur Speaker Series for the fall 2009 semester. His presentation will be on “The Origins of Yap Inc.: How do You Start a Company in an Industry Filled With Loud Mouths?"

The event, which is free and open to the public, is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 24, in 112 Walker Building. There will be a brief reception with refreshments at 4:15 p.m. followed by the presentation at 4:30 p.m.

Founded in 2006, Yap, Inc. pioneered the world's first speech-to-text platform that did not rely upon humans for conversions. The company's technologies provide the foundation for innovative analytics, messaging, search, translation and voicemail services for commercial or government applications.

Yap’s technologies have been used in such applications as IM+ for Blackberry and iPhone, which uses Yap's platform to convert speech into instant messages, and YouMail, which converts incoming voicemails into text. The company has helped create leading products such as Apple's iPod, IBM's ViaVoice and Nuance's Dragon.

The company has reached wide acclaim for its work in curbing texting while driving, allowing it to be selected as a finalist in Silicon Valley’s TechCrunch event, often referred to as the "American Idol" of the technology industry. It also was named North Carolina's Early Stage Company of the Year in 2007.

The company is headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., and is venture financed by SunBridge Partners and Harbert Venture Partners.

Jablokov, who has served as Yap’s CEO since its inception, is a 1997 computer engineering graduate of Penn State.

Established in fall 2008, the Norbert and Audrey Gaelen Entrepreneur Speaker Series is made possible through an endowment by Norbert and Audrey Gaelen. Each semester, the series brings successful entrepreneurs to the University for entrepreneurship-focused events to foster Penn State’s innovation culture.

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