This talk describes a new technology that significantly increases the base functionality of speech IVRs. A dedicated intelligence engine, or “brain,” manages each live conversation. This engine integrates a number of general capabilities designed to offer sophisticated yet robust natural language self-service. These capabilities include dynamically tuning statistical language model speech recognition, natural language parsing and interpretation, built-in conversational skills and knowledge, and short- and long-term memory, as well as other cognitive abilities. Several practical examples of this technology are presented.

The assistive agent designed for Baby Boomers and beyond illustrates the various challenges and solutions pertaining to the idea of natural conversation. Problems such as adaptation to task familiarity, conversational move differences as a function of domain distance and history, and the automatic modulation of transitional pleasantries are discussed. Learn about the dilemmas ahead for advanced dialogue systems and how to solve them in a modular, comprehensible way.