Wagi sa Yamang Isip
Mylo Speech Buddy: Celebrating ausome children’s first words through innovation and intellectual property
by Janina Lim
April 30, 2026
For children with speech delays, the words “Mama” and “Papa” are hard-won victories, often the result of years of therapy and sustained through the relentless support from parents and environments that enable inclusivity.
Mylo Speech Buddy CEO Vince Rocha knows this battle well enough when his son was diagnosed with autism at age and, by four, still could not speak. Like many parents, Rocha faced the system under pressure from a critical shortage of experts.
In the Philippines, there are only around 98 to 99 certified developmental-behavioral pediatricians serving an estimated 1.2 million individuals with autism, translating to roughly one specialist for every 12,000 patients.
Rocha is a founder and CEO of Mylo, founded in June 2023 and launched officially on World Autism Day on April 2, 2024. The brand name Mylo is a portmanteau of “my little one
“We tried to find the right interventions, the right OT with the right credentials. It took us years,” Rocha recalls. Once, his son had been 200th on a waitlist which could mean a months-long wait and further delay. His therapy required four sessions a week at P1,500 each or about P24,000 monthly.
Rocha considers himself fortunate his family could afford it. But the experience raised the harder question of what happens to those who cannot.
For this, Rocha built Mylo, with a mission to help one million ausome children by 2026. Today, the company is moving beyond the screen, launching physical therapy centers and expanding its reach internationally, with intellectual property (IP) protection forming a critical part, especially in its expansion phase.
Building in the waiting
Rocha admitted that Mylo was not built on a new idea. In fact, there are several video-based speech tools developed in other countries. But they were costly. Mylo offers a similar solution with a library of short, focused videos priced at P5,999 a year, a fraction of similar platforms that charge that amount monthly.
The content, now over 3,000 minutes long, uses brief clips centered on specific words and grouped by developmental level. Mylo works closely with speech pathologists, occupational therapists and medical professionals to ensure activities are evidence-based. What began as a workaround, using creative commons video clips, evolved into a product, built with friends in tech and business and launched on World Autism Awareness Day in 2023.
Today, it has over 115,000 downloads across 141 countries and Mylo is recognized with several accolades for its impact.
But for all its reach, Rocha is clear about what Mylo is—and what it is not. “It is not a replacement for therapy. It’s an assistive tool,” he explains. “It’s something families can use while waiting or alongside therapy.”
From virtual to physical modern care
Speak Clinic, Mylo’s teleconsultation platform, connects families to a network of doctors and therapists, making speech and developmental care more accessible.
Last year, the startup launched Speak Clinic, a teleconsultation platform that not only provides consultations but also connects parents to a wider network of doctors and therapists, effectively serving as a central directory and easing the burden parents face when finding the right specialists. This tech innovation is supported by the Department of Science and Technology to innovate the current technology that can be used to make the process of finding therapists easier.
This year, Mylo brings its services beyond the screen with the launch of the All Ways Therapy Center, as supported by the Department of Science and Technology with funding. The center aims to elevate the therapy experience by integrating modern technologies at every stage, from AI-generated notes that summarize sessions to tools that help track a child’s progress.
“It’s a return to the original problem of access to therapy,” Rocha said, “But this time with more tools to address it.
No one left waiting
Beyond individual users, Mylo’s impact is expanding nationwide through partnerships with local governments and schools, widening access to families who would otherwise be left waiting.
Mylo Speech Buddy CEO Vince Rocha speaks at the launch of an online speech program for children with disabilities in Taguig, expanding access for children with disabilities and bringing speech support beyond the screen.
Taguig was among the first to partner with Mylo, funding one-year unlimited access to the platform for children on the waitlist at the Taguig Yakap Center.
Discussions with the Department of Education are also underway. If realized, the tie-up could advance inclusive education by bringing accessible speech support tools into public classrooms.
In recent years, the startup has also added global specialists into its network of experts to ensure its tools remain evidence-based and aligned with international standards.
IP for collaboration, global expansion
At the same time, Mylo is strengthening its IP strategy, an increasingly critical move as it develops original content in Filipino and other local languages, expanding both its audience reach and its portfolio of IP assets.
Currently, Mylo’s foundation rests on the copyright protection of its software and its digital library of video clips. These collections qualify as derivative works under the IP Code, which covers compilations of literary, scholarly or artistic works, as well as data and other materials that are original by virtue of their selection, coordination or arrangement.
Building on this base, the company is formalizing its IP portfolio by securing trademarks, exploring additional protection mechanisms and standardizing its licensing frameworks. It is also working closely with legal counsel to structure partnerships with clearer ownership and usage rights.
In parallel, Mylo is positioning itself for international expansion, particularly in Finland and Canada, where investor interest could translate into on-the-ground operations as early as this year. Entering these markets requires robust, scalable assets, from content libraries and delivery systems to brand equity, that can be effectively licensed and leveraged across jurisdictions.
Mylo Speech Buddy received two Gold Stevie® Awards: “Tech Startup of the Year – Software” at the 21st International Business Awards and “New Product of the Year – Educational Technology” at the Technology Excellence Awards. It was also named one of Manila Bulletin’s 2025 Newsmakers of the Year, and earned top spot at the ARISE Plus YE! Boost Accelerator and 1st runner-up in the PLDT–Smart Startup Innovation Challenge.
In this context, IP functions as infrastructure. It underpins valuation, supports cross-border partnerships and creates a framework for co-development. For Rocha, IP is less about exclusivity than about enabling growth. Clearly defined rights allow Mylo to collaborate with schools, therapists and public institutions without ambiguity, reducing friction in adoption.
“Some startups overcomplicate IP,” Rocha said. “For us, it’s about collaboration.”
Like any startup, Mylo’s success in the market is measured by valuations, downloads, user base and revenues. But Rocha’s metric of impact are the first words that ausome kids have learned to say with the help of the Mylo app.
Rocha recalled how one child’s first words were “me,” “you,” “mama,” “papa,” “itchy,” “outchy.” This was the exact order of the first words learned from the platform.
“Doon mo makikita na natututo talaga sila,” he said. “Even my son. Video modeling works. Some learn fast, some take longer. My son took his time. But it works.”