Waze Malaysia, Maxis and Ensemble Worldwide use a kids voice pack to remind parents that kids’ lives are at stake when driving recklessly

The World Health Orgnisation reports, road traffic injuries are the eighth leading cause of death globally. Current trends suggest that by 2030 road traffic deaths will become the fifth leading cause of death unless urgent action is taken.

According to a University of Michigan’s Transport Research Institute study, Malaysia is the second-most dangerous country for drivers in South East Asia after Thailand, with 30 fatalities per 100,000 individuals.

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This sparked a three-way collaboration between Waze, Malaysian based telecommunications company, Maxis and creative agency Ensemble Worldwide to create an innovative safety reminder on the road.

As a mobile service provider, Maxis recognised the power they possess to access users personal space coupled with the capacity to deliver a timely message.

Waze on the other hand has been leading the effort to make driving a smoother and safer experience, while improving the quality of life with mobile technology.

Waze Head of APAC Sales Eleanne Hattis said: “Safety is the utmost mission for any new feature or campaign Waze develops as we work together with citizens to improve their time in the car. We’re proud to work with Maxis on this project, amplifying a common goal to use mobile technology to promote safer roadways. People generally drive safer with children in the car, and we believe this is an attention-grabbing feature that will assist in spreading the cause.”

Sponsored by Maxis, the corporate social responsibility project is an attempt at improving road safety – simply by using the voices of children as a voice pack option on Waze. It serves as a reminder to adults that when driving recklessly, childrens’ lives are at stake, whether their own who ride with them, other children on the road or even their children waiting at home for them.

Conceptualised by Ensemble Worldwide which is part of the IPG Mediabrands Group, the idea for the kids voicepack was inspired by the insight from a Maxis-commissioned study, that 9 out of 10 parents drive safer when their kids are in the car. With the Waze Safe Mode voice pack, you will always have a ‘kid’ in your car to remind you to drive safer.

Different from other Waze special voice packs that usually feature a single celebrity voice, the Safe Mode Kids invited children between the ages of 3 to 12 years old to donate their voices for Waze directional prompts with charming reminders to drive safe. Instead of the standard Waze navigation prompts you will hear: ‘All set. Don’t forget your seatbelt’, ‘Re-routing. Eyes on the Road!’ and “Accident reported ahead. Please be careful, ok?”

The initiative that started out as a local campaign in Malaysia is now being launched globally. The kids’ voice pack is now available to more than 50 million Waze users around the world.

Credits –

Project Team – Chong Jia Ling, Lim Jia Yang, Chang Min Fung