Halifax-based Talkatoo is one of four Canadian startups accepted into the first cohort of the Google for Startups Accelerator: Voice AI.

Google announced this week that 12 North American companies would attend the 10-week accelerator, which aims to bring Google’s programs, products and people to voice technology companies.

The program, which begins in March, will offer participating companies mentorship and technical support, with a focus on product design, customer acquisition, and leadership development.

Talkatoo, which last summer raised $700,000 in equity funding in a round led by Concrete Ventures, has developed a Software-as-a-Service voice-recognition product that helps veterinary professionals dictate notes that are immediately transcribed. It uses artificial intelligence to ensure that complicated medical terms are identified and accurately transcribed.

Another member of the Voice AI cohort is familiar to the Atlantic Canadian startup community: Simbi of Vancouver. A graduate of Propel’s Incite II program, Simbi is an edtech company whose software records students as they read stories aloud, then allows other students to read along as they listen to the recording.

The other Canadian ventures in the cohort are two Toronto companies, Babbly  and conversationHEALTH.