OpenAI has officially begun the rollout of Advanced Voice Mode for its ChatGPT Plus and Team users. Announced in a series of posts across social media on September 24, 2024.
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Advanced Voice Mode is rolling out to Plus and Team subscribers in the US, while Enterprise and Education plan subscribers will gain access the following week.
The feature will not be available immediately in the European Union, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein due to regulatory and legal challenges.
The rollout is being implemented gradually with users seeing an in-app notification near the voice icon when the feature becomes accessible.
As part of the AVM rollout, five new voices have been introduced bringing the total available voices to nine. These new voices are named Arbor, Maple, Sol, Spruce and Vale, all inspired by nature.
These new additions join the existing voices Breeze, Juniper, Cove and Ember, which were part of the earlier, less advanced version of the feature. Each voice is designed to represent different tones and characters such as easygoing and versatile or animated and earnest, according to OpenAI’s Voice mode FAQ.
The primary goal of AVM is to offer users a more human-like conversation experience with ChatGPT. The feature is designed to improve speech interaction.
The company has focused on improving its model’s ability to recognize and respond to various accents more accurately. The AVM now supports over 50 languages.
Users will notice that AVM now features a blue animated sphere design in the ChatGPT interface replacing the older animated black dots that were used in the alpha version. This design change enhances the visual appeal and provides a clearer indication of voice mode activation.
One of the features introduced with AVM is Memory, allowing ChatGPT to remember user preferences and previous conversations. This improves the user experience by ensuring continuity across interactions.
Users can also leverage Custom Instructions to tailor how ChatGPT responds to specific queries or behaves during conversations. This feature enhances personalization.
The company has implemented multiple safeguards to prevent the misuse of AVM especially for malicious purposes like impersonating real individuals.
The company has stated that all voices are preset and created in collaboration with paid voice actors.
Strict filters have been introduced to block requests that may involve generating copyrighted or violent content. OpenAI has noted that these guardrails are crucial in preventing legal and ethical concerns in light of music industry actions against AI companies.
One incident involved a legal challenge from actress Scarlett Johansson, who alleged that one of the AI voices, Sky, sounded too similar to her character from the film Her. OpenAI responded by removing the voice and asserting that it was not their intention to imitate Johansson.
The addition of Advanced Voice Mode positions OpenAI’s ChatGPT to compete with other AI voice assistants like Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s Gemini Live.
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Companies like Meta and Google have also been working on integrating voice features into their AI platforms. French AI company Kyutai released its open-source AI voice assistant Moshi in July and Hume AI introduced an Empathic Voice Interface designed to sense emotions in real-time conversations.
According to a report by PYMNTS Intelligence, consumers are showing increasing interest in smart, reliable voice assistants. 22% of Gen Z consumers are willing to pay more than $10 a month for a voice assistant as smart as a human.
The report also found that 54% of consumers prefer using voice assistants over typing or touchscreen interactions primarily due to the speed and convenience of voice commands.
Update Your App Ensure that you have the latest version of the ChatGPT app on your mobile device. You won’t be able to access the new feature without updating your app.
Look for Notifications Once OpenAI has granted you access, you will receive a notification inside the app. You’ll need to follow the on-screen instructions to activate the voice mode.
Starting a Voice Chat After Activating the Feature:
- Open the ChatGPT app and create a new chat.
- Tap the sound wave icon located next to the microphone button, ensuring your sound settings are enabled.
- Once activated, a dynamic, fluid blue-and-white animation will appear, indicating the voice mode is ready.
Speak naturally and the AI will respond almost instantly. The conversations are designed to feel more engaging and lifelike. The Advanced Voice Mode comes with various customization options, allowing users to tailor their experience.
You can ask ChatGPT to talk faster. ChatGPT is now better at understanding different accents and can adopt regional accents like Southern or British. The AI can also stop speaking if you interrupt, improving the flow of conversation.
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