By Sarah Sarsaby on 3rd September 2025
The power of AI has helped recreate a lady’s own voice from just a single line of speech from an old video so that she can express herself in a way that feels personal to her when using augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) technology.
Sarah Ezekiel is using Smartbox’s eye gaze AAC device, Grid Pad, to communicate. Her identity has been restored thanks to ElevenLabs, an AI voice platform that enables people to generate authentic voices that sound like them, which was able to recreate her voice using AI so that she “has her voice back”.
It means her children can now hear Sarah’s own voice, instead of sounding like a robot, as they were too young to remember what her voice sounded like.
ElevenLabs voices are available for free for all Smartbox Grid users over the age of 18. Find out more here.
Being diagnosed with MND
Sarah explained: “I was diagnosed with MND in April 2000 whilst pregnant with my second child. After my son, Eric, was born, my symptoms progressed rapidly and soon I was unable to use my hands. My marriage collapsed and I needed care for myself and my children. I lived in an offline wilderness until I got my first assistive technology computer in 2005. That’s when my life started again.”
Using eye gaze tech to create and direct art
In 2012, Sarah began painting with her eyes using art software and eye gaze technology.
“I’d studied art and history of art, and not being able to create after diagnosis was really hard for me,” Sarah said. “Eye gaze changed that. It was initially slow and challenging, but I was just grateful to be creative again.”
Over the years, she has exhibited her work across the UK and internationally.
In 2023, Sarah’s art went beyond digital art when she directed and co-created Ms MaNDy’s Adventures in Wonderland – a multimedia drag theatre show inspired by her experiences of living with MND.
Sarah recalled how the show began: “In 2019, I met Professor Andrew Irving and his partner Melissa, and shared some memoir writing I’d done. That led to the idea of telling my story in a creative way. I met Cheddar Gorgeous in 2023 through Andrew and started exploring drag as a form of expression. Cheddar and a group of brilliant drag queens helped bring it all together.
“The show explores my experiences of MND through dream-like sequences, monologues, music, and visuals. It’s a creative retelling of my life and struggles, but it’s also full of joy and humour.
“I used AI art to help design costumes, and my Grid Pad to help direct. We’ve had two shows so far and the feedback has been amazing.”
Learn more about Ms MaNDy’s Adventures in Wonderland and Sarah’s inspiring story in the video below.
Regaining her voice through AI
Sarah said that the hardest part of having MND was losing her speech. She felt like she had lost her identity.
However, with just a single line of speech from an old video, ElevenLabs was able to recreate Sarah’s voice using AI.
“I love having my voice back, I almost cried when I first heard it,” Sarah enthused. “My kids couldn’t remember what my voice used to sound like, but now they can hear the real me again.”
Reference
- https://attoday.co.uk/case-study-ai-helps-recreate-ladys-own-voice-so-she-could-regain-her-identity-when-using-aac-tech/
