Speech-to-Text
Speech-to-text (STT) is the technology that converts spoken language into written text, enabling AI systems to process and understand voice interactions.
In Depth
Speech-to-text is the entry point for AI-powered voice support. When a customer calls a support line, STT converts their spoken words into text that AI agents can process, analyze, and respond to. Modern STT systems achieve near-human accuracy across dozens of languages and accents, handle background noise, and operate in real time with minimal latency.
In customer support, STT enables real-time call transcription for agent assist tools, post-call analytics and quality monitoring, searchable archives of voice interactions, and automatic note-taking during calls. Advanced STT also captures speaker diarization (identifying who said what), punctuation, and emotional cues from tone of voice. The accuracy of STT directly impacts downstream AI performance — if transcription is wrong, the AI agent's understanding and response will be wrong too.
Related Terms
Speech Recognition
Speech recognition is the technology that enables computers to identify and process human speech, converting spoken words into actionable data for AI systems.
Voice AI
Voice AI combines speech recognition, natural language understanding, and speech synthesis to enable AI agents to handle phone conversations with customers in real-time.
Text-to-Speech
Text-to-speech (TTS) is the technology that converts written text into natural-sounding spoken audio, enabling AI systems to communicate with customers through voice channels.
Learn More
