A Japanese start-up company has developed a "smart mask" that can translate from Japanese into eight other languages, The Guardian reports.
The white plastic mask fits over a regular mask and uses Bluetooth technology to connect to a smartphone or tablet app that can turn speech into text.
“We worked hard for years to develop a robot and we have used that technology to create a product that responds to how the coronavirus has reshaped society,” said Taisuke Ono, chief executive of Donut Robotics.