What will it be like to use voice services in the year 2024? This short presentation offers some ideas. It is being used to stimulate discussion as research for a report and video to be published later this year.

1. 2024?
What will using voice be like in…
The Future Voice Experience
Martin Geddes

2. Voice is available every ‘wear’
2014
Tied – ‘mobile phone’
Users get only one service (telephony),
generally tied to only one device
2024
Ambient – ‘mobile service’
Microphones, speakers and proximity sensors will
be embedded into our environment
(car, living space, work space, wearable items)
These sensors will support both multiple
communications and assistance services,
and many control devices at once

3. Voice is private and secure
2014
Security is an afterthought
Multiple vulnerabilities at the transport level
(spoofing, eavesdropping, phishing)
Reactive and clumsy application experience:
one-time authentication and
all-or-nothing authorisation
2024
Security is integrated
Voice data in transit and storage is
private and protected by default
Proactive and simple application experience:
continuous user authentication just through
act of speaking with voice biometrics.
Layered device and user security model.

4. Voice adopts a human-centred UI
UI Maximalism
Adding functions proliferates
menus and buttons.
Machine-centric interaction:
complex to manage advanced features
UI Minimalism
Provides only the capabilities
that are relevant in the moment
Smartphone interaction enables richer features:
touch, swipe, wave, point, rotate, shake… & talk
2014 2024

5. Voice becomes embedded into applications
Separate application
‘Dialler’ application on phone
replicates 1970s touchtone phone
Address book replicates 1980s Filofax
Contextual service
Contact management is woven into multiple
business collaboration and personal social apps
No ‘dialler’, and the address book fades away
2014 2024

6. Voice is a personalised experience
One-size-fits-all
Any kind of call signalling,
routing or value-added feature you like
(as long as it’s 1990s GSM telephony)
Tailored service
Users personalize communications
services via a ‘feature store’ just like they
personalise devices via an ‘app store’.
(e.g. Salesforce add-in to forward unanswered
calls from clients to personal mobile to a group).
2014 2024

7. Voice progresses beyond the ‘call’
2014
Static Rendezvous
Calendar-based conference calls:
fixed timing, fixed length, fixed attendees…
…OR Interruptive calls driven by a single party
2024
Dynamic Rendezvous
Dynamic timing of interactions with variable
length and variable attendees
Users issue ‘requests for conversations’,
rather than make ‘calls’
‘Voice hangouts’ that act like
‘virtual water coolers’ (tagged with subjects)
Fluid shifting between text & voice media

8. Augmented memory & total recall
Ephemeral & forgets everything
Both voice and all related
digital gestures/interactions (e.g. notes) are lost
Separate and low-value call log
Recordable
& can remember everything
Voice is recordable (if not always recorded),
all related digital actions can be captured
Integrated and high-value,
searchable activity stream
2014 2024

9. Your attention is protected
Anyone can call me anytime
‘Call’ as a summons:
only an inbound number (‘poor caller ID’)
Not able to select social groupings and filters
No reputational system to discourage low-value
calls and punish nuisance callers
Filtered and managed
‘Call’ as an offer: comes with a reason & context
(‘rich caller ID’, almost like a movie trailer)
Easily able to group, manage
and filter by social context
Strong reputational feedback for misuse and abuse
2014 2024

10. Your intelligent voice assistant
Voice control
Intermittent disjoined and reactive assistant experience
that is outside the call:
“Call Jane on mobile”
“Siri, what’s my next appointment?”
Intelligent voice partner
Automated and always-listening
assistant during the call:
“Hold on a minute Bob, she’s not available then.”
Proactively suggests relevant content
(visually or spoken)
2014 2024

11. Voice is accessible to all
Low accessibility
Standard definition mono, no custom processing
No automated subtitling
No integration with hearing aids
Weak translation & transcription capability
No transcripts
High accessibility
High-definition and customised acoustic profiles to
both the individual and location
Automated real-time subtitles
Cloud digital hearing aid integration
Real-time translation is normal
Every call can have a transcript
2014 2024

12. Voice is fit-for-business
Few commerce features
Toll-free numbers, IVRs
Clumsy customer identification
Painful dictated exchange of transactional data
Ready for commerce
Natural language and
multi-modal customer service
Identity services are integrated
Visual entry & confirmation of transactions
(money, personal data) with receipt
2014 2024

13. Join us at
www.hypervoice.org
martin@hypervoice.org
How will you influence the
Future Voice Experience?