Advanced Voice Mode is Coming
I may use it to relearn my mother's tongue.
For the past few weeks, there have been a number of posts showcasing the latest capabilities of OpenAI's ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode. Right now, only a select few users have the privilege of accessing and playing around with the latest update1, and some of the demo’s are pretty impressive. Here is a snippet from a longer clip by @CrisGiardina on X that really stood out for me:
After watching this clip, I thought about how I could use this feature to enhance my own Punjabi language learning. My ability to speak Punjabi is poor - I can mostly understand what is being said to me, but I often struggle to reply back with coherent sentences. This has always been the case when speaking with my Nani who isn’t as familiar with English. I pulled out some Punjabi books from my youth2 but quickly found them to be cumbersome and static, so I'll probably switch to LLMs for a more practical learning experience. When this version of advanced voice mode becomes available for all subscribers, I’m going to make the most of it by practising Punjabi speaking exercises.
LLMs can make excellent teaching companions and have the the ability to create a bespoke personalised learning experience. Adding a realistic low-latency voice mode enhances the utility of these models even more. However, learning languages is just one use case. I’ve already used the current voice mode on ChatGPT as a knowledge companion when going for lengthy walks or drives3. It’s kind of like having a limited version of J.A.R.V.I.S. from Iron Man in your pocket4.
As of August 2024, although, apparently, OpenAI plans to enable it for all paying customers at some point this Autumn.
Long story short, me and my bro used to attend Punjabi school when we were kids but were thrown out because we never took it seriously. There’s a letter in the Punjabi alphabet called ਙ “nganngaa” which kind of sounds like the Punjabi word for “naked” (“nangā”). This used to crack us up all the time (we were kids man). Nonetheless, it was the last straw for the Punjabi teacher.
Crossed out just in case someone has a problem with it 😉.
I say “limited” because these LLMs currently can’t perform many actions on your behalf - like calling out your Iron Man suit.