The call center industry is being shaken up by the advent of generative AI. Bot voices increasingly resemble human pitch and phrasing, and AI’s ability to compile and regurgitate mountains of documents allows bots to answer queries with aplomb — even if they sometimes fail miserably!
AI tinkers with voices
At Teleperformance, we have taken good note of this technology: generative AI is used in several of the company's activities, to train new employees or transcribe calls for quality control. But the company also wants to use it for a surprising purpose. "When you have an Indian agent on the other end of the line, it is sometimes difficult to hear and understand," declared to BloombergThomas Mackenbrock, deputy CEO.
That's why the group will use technology developed by Sanas to "neutralize" the accent of its Indian employees with zero latency. Coupled with a system for reducing ambient noise, discussions with these speakers should "create greater proximity, increase customer satisfaction and reduce average handling time."
Of course, this software is not without its problems. It could be seen as a threat to customer service centers that, like the Philippines, train excellent English speakers. On a more cultural level, this type of tool can be seen as an attack on the identity of workers, and harm the authenticity of conversations.
For Sanas, it is about “reducing discrimination related to accents”. The software developed by this company, in which Teleperformance has invested $13 million, can reduce Indian and Filipino accents. It is also being optimized for other regions. For the call center giant, AI is already “ubiquitous,” says Mackenbrock. But he adds that “to build connections, improve the customer experience, and build brand awareness, the human element will remain incredibly important.” We breathe.
Source: Bloomberg
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