Near the end of last year, we got to go thumbs-on with a new smartphone keyboard Typewise and pose a few questions to CEO David Eberle. The combination of a hex keyboard layout, intuitive multi-function shortcut keys, and gesture functions all made it significantly easier to type quickly, with fewer typos. Sure, it took some time to get your brain around the modified QWERTY layout and the numerical keyboard still needed some refinement, but the end result was a far less frustrating typing experience.
Of course, the novel keyboard layout and improved typing experience were only part of the package. Typewise has a strong focus on both text prediction and privacy. The multi-language autocorrect function draws on a constantly updated wordlist but also uses AI-learning to tailor it to the user. If you value total privacy, these features can function entirely offline with no data leaving your device.
With ongoing development, an ever-expanding wordlist, and AI-learning improvements, Typewise has filed a patent (U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/134,347, filed January 2022, entitled: “Methods and Systems for Modifying User Input Processes”) for their advanced text prediction and autocorrect technology used in the keyboard app, new browser-based writing assistant, and API.
Typewise has been conducting ongoing tests since launch, which has demonstrated their autocorrect technology corrects a higher percentage of errors than either Google Gboard or Apple keyboard, coupled with the aforementioned reduction in typos. The text prediction technology also saves a greater percentage of character inputs (a boon for those who type furiously fast).
Autocorrect and Text Prediction AI: Typewise Keyboard vs Gboard vs Apple Keyboard
| Smartphone Keyboard | % Errors Corrected | % Miscorrected words | % Characters Saved |
| Typewise | 72.38 | 0.39 | 65% |
| Google Gboard | 70.64 | 0.92 | 48% |
| Apple Keyboard | 67.59 | 0.75 | 50% |
Typewise’s CEO and co-founder David Eberle had this to say:
“We are generally fans of Apple but neither they, nor Google have nailed autocorrect or text prediction. We wanted to build something better and that’s exactly what our AI-powered technology has achieved, which we are now protecting with this patent. Our work demonstrates how it is possible for smaller companies to beat Big Tech when focus and execution are done well.
“Although our autocorrect and text prediction AI already outperforms the competition straight out of the box, it also learns from the user, picking up their slang and dialects, so gets even better with time. It does all this without transferring any user typing data to the cloud; instead, our tech takes place on-device. In addition, we’re continually improving our AI so expect to see the gap between Typewise and others’ offerings grow even greater over the next 18 months.”
