Making safety a priority for the future of conversational AI

The potential of conversational AI is clear and exciting – but only if we can rely on the accuracy of the information shared during an interaction. Access to large language models has vastly extended the scope and chat capability of

The evolution of open domain question answering

Until conversational AI can keep pace with the breadth and spontaneity of human conversation, it will fail to create the human-like connection and companionship users now crave from voice-enabled devices. By developing market-changing open domain conversational question answering capability, we

The importance of (mis)communication

Every day, we edit and repair our conversations. We hesitate, we restart, we correct ourselves and each other on the fly. But what we do so naturally and collaboratively in human-to-human interaction is difficult to replicate in dialogue with devices.

A visual scene with object captions
Visual dialogue: Why we’re giving Alana eyes

What will become possible when conversational AI can ‘see’? Websites and social media are increasingly dominated by photos and videos, and many devices now have cameras that can ‘see’ the world around us. Imagine when virtual agents are able to

Companion AI: Building voice and vision technology for the blind and partially sighted

We ask Robin Spinks of the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to explain how the Alana AI companion will help people with sight loss to live the life they want to lead. Technology can be a fantastic enabler