Beyond Siri And Alexa: Can Artificial Intelligence Help Us Communicate Better?

When we think about artificial intelligence and human speech we typically think of personal assistants like Siri and Alexa. That technology is still in its infancy. What if the real potential with AI is not to make computers or apps sound more human, but instead, to help humans be more humane and empathetic? An MIT spin-off company called Cogito has developed software that evaluates the subtle give-and-take of conversation--focusing not on what is said, but how it is said. The technology monitors subtleties of speech like tone, energy, vocal strain, and tempo.