This New App Claims it Can Predict Why Your Baby is Crying

This new app claims it can translate your baby’s crying sounds to predict what’s wrong

By Saqib Shah January 7, 2016

MonBaby — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Look who’s talking indeed. Developers of a new app from Taiwan called “Infant Cries Translator” claim that it can translate the myriad crying sounds made by babies.

Researchers at the National Taiwan University Hospital Yunlun who helped create the app claim they recorded around 200,000 crying sounds from 100 newborns. The recordings were then fed into an online database, which helped them determine the type of cry that matches a particular need. Consequently, the app will notify you whether your baby is hungry, sleepy, in pain, or has a wet nappy.

It works by asking the user to upload a recording of their baby’s cry, which the app then analyses using its algorithm. A mere ten seconds later, one of the four options listed above is presented. The developers of Instant Cries Translator claim it is 92 percent accurate for babies one month and under, 85 percent accurate for babies two months and under, and 77 percent accurate for babies four months and under. The team does not recommend using the app for babies over six months, as at that age the cries tend to become more varied, reports Slate.

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Although people become more naturally experienced in understanding their babies the more time they spend with them, the developers insist that their app can still help novice parents.

Explaining the method behind the research, pediatrician Dr. Chen Si-da stated the following to Yahoo Parenting: “When the new born babies are feeling hungry, they would have a typical response called ‘Sucking Reflex’. Their mouths would wriggle uncontrollably, and their tongue would lick their lips, even turning their heads to look for the breast for breast feeding.”

“So we can accurately understand the cause of this reaction is hunger on the basis of the medical judgment,” he added.

Although the app is currently only available in Chinese on the iOS App Store and Google Play, its simple animated UI can easily be interpreted by non-Chinese speakers. Infant Cries Translator is available now for $2.99.

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