What happens when a stroke survivor turns his own struggle with aphasia into an AI tool designed to help others communicate? In Episode 29 of When Words Don’t Come Easy, Justin and Roger sit down with Stephen Albright, a stroke survivor, entrepreneur, and creator of AphasiaGPT, an AI-powered platform designed to help people with aphasia practice communication, language, and real-world conversations. Stephen's story is remarkable. In 2020, he suffered a devastating stroke that left him with severe aphasia and underwent two brain surgeries with a reported 13% survival rate. When he woke up, he had lost much of his ability to communicate, including speaking, reading, writing, and understanding language. His recovery became a years-long journey involving intensive speech therapy and practice. But Stephen didn't stop at his own recovery. After experiencing firsthand how difficult and limited some available tools could feel, he began building AphasiaGPT, an AI platform created specifically around the needs of people living with language disabilities. It uses AI-powered conversations, exercises, word-finding tools, and real-world communication practice to help people work on language skills outside traditional therapy sessions. In this conversation, Stephen talks openly about his stroke, aphasia recovery, the emotional challenges of losing the ability to communicate, and what motivated him to turn his experience into technology that could help others. • Stephen's stroke, two brain surgeries, and recovery• Living with severe aphasia and losing the ability to communicate• Why aphasia affects language, not intelligence• Speech therapy and long-term recovery• Why Stephen created AphasiaGPT• AI, word finding, and real-world communication practice• Technology and the future of aphasia recovery• Stephen's journey from stroke survivor to entrepreneur and inventor Stephen has described AphasiaGPT as the technology he wishes he had during the earliest years of his recovery. The platform is designed to make language practice more accessible and engaging outside traditional therapy. Stephen Albright is a stroke survivor, entrepreneur, and founder of AphasiaGPT. He was a University of North Carolina football player before his stroke and later earned his MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. His experience with aphasia became the driving force behind his work developing technology for people with communication disabilities. Stephen says his goal with AphasiaGPT is to build tools that make recovery more accessible, practical, and engaging for people living with aphasia. 🌐 AphasiaGPT: aphasiagpt.ai💼 Stephen Albright: LinkedIn🔗 AphasiaGPT: LinkedIn📱 AphasiaGPT App: App Store When Words Don't Come Easy is a podcast about connection, recovery, and life after stroke and aphasia. Hosted by Justin Chlowitz and his father Roger, the podcast brings together stroke survivors, caregivers, speech-language pathologists, doctors, researchers, and advocates. New episodes are released Sundays at 9 AM Pacific. Roger is a stroke survivor living with aphasia, and Justin uses their personal experience to create honest conversations about communication, recovery, family, therapy, brain injury, and life after stroke. The goal is simple: increase awareness of aphasia, reduce isolation, and remind people that aphasia affects language, not intelligence. 📺 Watch on YouTube🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart and other major podcast platforms Subscribe, follow, and share the episode with someone affected by aphasia, stroke recovery, speech therapy, or communication challenges. #Aphasia #AphasiaGPT #StephenAlbright #StrokeSurvivor #StrokeRecovery #AphasiaRecovery #SpeechTherapy #AI #BrainInjury #StrokeAwareness #AphasiaAwareness #AssistiveTechnology #WhenWordsDontComeEasy
