Krisp uses AI to Americanize Indian Accents on Calls

Audio startup Krisp announced on Wednesday a new AI-powered feature that modifies a user’s accent during calls. Initially, it will support converting Indian English accents to U.S. English.

According to the company, the technology preserves the speaker’s voice while adjusting phonemes to align with American pronunciation. The feature has been tested in enterprise settings and is now available in beta on the Krisp desktop app, where users can enable it before or during calls.

Krisp’s Accent Modification

Krisp co-founder Arto Minasyan said the idea emerged from personal experience. “Even though I speak English well, many people struggle to understand my accent. We believed modifying accents could improve communication. After two years of development, we’re launching this in beta,” Minasyan explained.

When this reporter tested the feature, the altered voice lacked naturalness and occasionally omitted words. Krisp attributed these issues to the beta phase, assuring that the model would improve with time.

The company claims that enterprise testing showed promising results, with sales conversion rates increasing by 26.1% and revenue per booking rising by 14.8%.

Prioritizing Indian Accents with Plans for Expansion

Krisp chose to focus on Indian accents first, citing India’s significant representation in the global STEM workforce. The company also plans to expand support to additional accents, including Filipino.

Other startups, such as GV-backed Sanas, have already implemented similar technology on a large scale in call centers.

Krisp trained its model using thousands of speech samples encompassing various accents and dialects, along with data from its meeting assistant, with user consent.

Minasyan highlighted that the feature does not require pre-training on an individual’s voice, as it generates a speaker profile in real time.

The company, which last secured funding in 2021, plans to launch iOS and Android apps this year to enhance in-person meetings. Additionally, a Chrome extension is in development for improved Google Meet integration.

Read the original article on: TechCrunch

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