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Thursday, January 16
7:45 AM
Registration
8:45 AM - 9:30 AM
Session #401, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
THE SAMSUNG BIXBY KEYNOTE:
Building a Conversational Experience in Minutes with Samsung’s Bixby
Adam Cheyer (Chief Technology Officer, Viv Labs, Samsung)
For decades, the relationship between developer and computer was simple: the human told the machine what to do. Next came machine learning systems, where the machine was in charge of computing the functional logic behind developer-supplied examples, typically in a form that humans couldn't even understand. Now we are entering a new age of software development, where humans and machines work collaboratively together, each doing what they do best. The Developer describes the "what" -- objects, actions, goals -- and the machine produces the "how," writing the code that satisfies each user's request by interweaving developer-provided components. The result is a system that is easier to create and maintain, while providing an end-user experience that is more intelligent and adaptable to users’ individual needs. In this talk, we will show concrete examples of this software trend using a next-generation conversational assistant named Bixby. We’ll supply you with a freely downloadable development environment so that you can give this a try yourself; and we’ll teach you how to build a conversational experience in minutes, to start monetizing your content and services through a new channel that will be backed by more than a billion devices in just a few years.
9:30 AM - 10:00 AM
Session #402, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
The State of the Union for Voice Assistants
Bret Kinsella (Founder and CEO, Voicebot.AI)
The latest data on voice assistant adoption worldwide and the trends driving the industry. What happened in 2019? Was there a slowdown? Did the industry accelerate? What are startup investors doing? What lies ahead for 2020 and beyond? Bret Kinsella of Voicebot.ai will break it all down and get you ready to execute during the new Roaring 20s, aka "The Decade of Voice."
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Session #403, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
The Voice Tech Media Panel
Moderator: Bradley Metrock
David Code (AI/Machine Learning Writer/Blogger, LinkedIn)
Mary Fortune (Business Reporter, Chattanooga Times Free Press)
Dian Schaffhauser (Senior Contributing Editor, T.H.E. Journal and Campus Technology)
Come join this fireside chat with leading media representatives, as they discuss voice tech and AI in the news, what these media outlets are interested in, and what stories they’re covering.
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM Coffee / Networking / Review of Exhibits
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM Press Briefing (by invitation only)
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM BOOK SIGNING
Session #410, Thursday January 16
Voice Strategy: Creating Useful and Usable Voice Experiences
(Susan & Scot Westwater)
10:35 AM - 10:55 AM
Session #411, Thursday January 16
Case Study: Speech Markdown
Mark Tucker (Senior Architect, Voice Technology, Soar.com)
As voice content moves from the costly realm of developers and code to a world where authors can quickly add or update it in a Content Management System (CMS), the way we format that voice content must also change. Through examples, we will explore Speech Markdown and see why you should consider this simple, cross-platform, and open source solution for your next project. Visit speechmarkdown.org.
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM
Session #412, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
The Project Voice Contrarian Speaker:
Why Voice Technology Sucks
Susan Hura (CEO, Banter Technology); Phillip Hunter (Senior Principal, [24]7.ai)
Voice assistants are unreliable conversationalists. Sometimes they’re not paying attention when they should be, other times they’re butting into conversations they’re not part of. They phrase things weirdly (“three minutes timer cancelled,”-- who says that?), they don’t exactly answer the questions we ask, they don’t know when to stop talking, and they offer us completely irrelevant options. They inexplicably fail to understand simple requests and mishear things on a regular basis. Voice assistants regularly fail at conversational tasks that most preschoolers can perform with ease. Many of these mistakes are avoidable; we can do better. Join us as we explore methods and philosophy for creating effective, intuitive, trustworthy conversations with machines.
11:20 AM - 11:45 AM
Session #413, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
PANEL: Bixby Strategic Partners
Moderator: Jennifer Arnold (Head of Partner Engineering, Viv Labs)
J.D. Crowley (Chief Digital Officer, RADIO.COM)
Will Mayo (Founder & CSO, Spoken Layer)
Daniel McCoy (Senior Director, Business Partnerships, NPR)
Kevin Yu (CEO & Founder, SideChef)
Hear from industry leaders about their experiences developing for Bixby. Get their unique perspectives on how Bixby drove business growth through the platform’s strategic differentiations, rich feature set, and sophisticated development tools. Learn about their vision for the future of intelligent voice assistants.
11:45 AM - 12:15 PM
Session #414, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
Succeeding as an Independent Voice Assistant and AI
Mike Zagorsek (Vice President of Product Marketing, SoundHound Inc.)
The importance of voice is more than just technological - it’s an extension of your business and brand strategy. Therefore, it’s critical that companies maintain control of their customer journeys, built from an independent voice AI platform. In a world where innovation is dominated by a powerful few, it’s more important than ever to maintain a balance of independence and choice in the market, both for consumers and data providers. In this discussion, we'll look at strategies for how to succeed in this space, and note some examples where companies have failed. Ultimately, your customers want value from your products and services directly ... and the freedom to just ask for it wherever they are.
12:15 PM - 1:45 PM Lunch / Networking / Review of Exhibits
12:45 PM - 1:05 PM
Session #422, Thursday January 16
Case Study: Why Your Voice Assistant Isn't Working:
The Importance of Training Data in Speech Recognition Systems
Daniela Braga, Ph.D. (Founder & CEO, DefinedCrowd)
We have all experienced Voice Assistant applications not working properly. While there are many potential reasons, one important reason often overlooked is not intelligently selecting the best VA platform on which to build. There are many great choices for Voice Assistant platforms; however, choosing the optimal one for your specific application requires upfront data, testing, and actual human-in-the-loop feedback. In this presentation, Dr. Braga will discuss the importance of training data and testing before selecting a platform.
1:05 PM - 1:25 PM
Session #423, Thursday January 16
Case Study: Audioburst and the Bixby Premier Developer Program
Rachel Batish (VP Product, Audioburst)
In this session Rachel will share how Audioburst became a Samsung Premier Developer, bringing its indexed and searchable short-form audio content into Bixby News.
1:25 PM - 1:45 PM
Session #424, Thursday January 16
Case Study: Creating a Bixby Capsule - Live Demo
Alex Dunn (Director & Principal Architect, Voicify)
How do you go from Concept to Capsule in 20 minutes? With an integration? Alex Dunn will showcase just that, leveraging the Voicify Conversation Experience Platform.
1:50 PM - 4:05 PM Breakout Tracks:
BIXBY + DEVELOPERS:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #431, Thursday January 16
Bixby 101: An Introduction to Bixby Development
John Alioto (Chief Evangelist, Viv Labs)
What does it take to get started with Bixby Development? What are the newest tools for Bixby? We will start with how to download and use Bixby Developer Studio, the full-featured development environment for building Bixby experiences. We’ll use the new innovative Bixby Templates to build a fully-functioning voice experience in minutes with no code! You’ll also learn the basics of coding together with an AI.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #441, Thursday January 16
Bixby Tips, Tricks, and Templates
Roger Kibbe (Senior Evangelist, Viv Labs)
Are you a developer or designer who works with Bixby or wants to learn more about Bixby? Come learn how to use Bixby features like Templates for both simple and complex development. What Bixby features make a voice experience go from good to great? We will explore how to take advantage of Bixby's personalization, location and geography, natural language, sharing/social capabilities and more. Come learn how to fully leverage the platform capabilities!
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Session #451, Thursday January 16
Bixby Views: Building for Phone, TV, Appliances, Watches & More
Jonathan Pan (Evangelist, Viv Labs)
With just three additional lines of code, developers can build immersive and responsive views for TVs, Fridges, and Watches. This session demonstrates how powerful and easy it is to build views for Bixby’s entire ecosystem.
3:35 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #461, Thursday January 16
Bixby Marketplace and Natural Language Categories
Jennifer Arnold (Head of Partner Engineering, Viv Labs)
Samsung recently launched the Bixby Marketplace, a reimagined voice app store where developers can publish services and users can seamlessly discover these services using natural language. In addition, Samsung launched Natural Language Categories designed to create a personalized assistant experience with direct access to 3rd party services. This session will show you how to maximize both.
VOICE + RETAIL:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #432, Thursday January 16
Reimagining Customer Experiences: Integrating Voice Into Digital Strategy
Tobias Dengel (CEO, WillowTree)
The future of voice technology is not building voice assistants as distinct device solutions, but rather integrating voice as a human experience solution that solves human problems. In order to achieve ROI and evolve businesses with voice, we must examine the human psychology of trust and adoption. Join this session to learn how to build trust between humans and voice technology, discover unignorable use cases for voice, and identify steps to implement voice customer experience solutions that will drive business impact.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #442, Thursday January 16
Elevating the Customer Journey with Conversational AI
Carrie Claiborn (User Interface Design, Interactions)
Modern customers decide the “what, when, and how” of customer service. However, the growing number of customer service channels is adding to the complexity of engaging and interacting with companies. While speaking is the easiest and the most natural form of communication, many customers feverishly avoid “the call” and resort to digital channels such as chat, SMS, smart speakers, etc. But when designed poorly, these channels can prove to be as exhausting as waiting “on hold” for eternity. This session will describe The Interactions Way - a set of best practices to define, design, deploy, measure, continuously improve, and certify conversational experiences for enterprise customer service. Learn how The Interactions Way technology can elevate the customer journey across channels.
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Session #452, Thursday January 16
Using Voice in Agriculture: The Future of Food
John Swansey (Co-Founder & Chief Design Officer, AgVoice)
In-field evaluations are essential for agronomists, soil scientists, plant breeders, and other professionals in the data-intensive world of modern agriculture. However, the outdoor environment is harsh, and users’ hands are busy manipulating soil, plants, and tools. In this session, we show advances in our pioneering work incorporating mobile and voice technology in a data-collection service optimized around the challenges of these task-focused outdoor workers. Highly specialized vocabularies, and the need for real-time confirmation and error handling, drive our development of an innovative voice-to-data multi-modal solution to help large companies in the food and agriculture industry amass clean data to feed analytics and business information systems.
3:35 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #462, Thursday January 16
Voice Shopping: What We've Learned So Far
Shilp Agarwal (CEO, Blutag)
Voice commerce is clearly changing consumer behavior. Retailers and brands should be planning their voice strategies NOW to stay competitive. Learn why it’s imperative to be an early mover in this space.
VOICE + AUTOMOTIVE:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #433, Thursday January 16
Next-Gen Navigation + Voice
Tom Blaksley (Technical Sales Director, what3words)
Talking to a machine about a precise location is an inherently frustrating and unpredictable experience: not everywhere has an address; not all addresses are in a language everyone speaks; and some addresses just sound the same (“3, 42nd Street” vs “342nd Street”). what3words has built a voice-first global addressing system to overcome these challenges. This session will cover the what3words founding story and its latest, yet-to-be announced product designed to make what3words for voice more readily available than ever to the automobility industry.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #443, Thursday January 16
The Car as Context: Vehicular Voice Experiences
Braden Ream (CEO, Voiceflow)
As voice assistants expand to every vertical of life, the car is increasingly becoming recognized as a "killer use case" for consumer voice assistants. Having seen over 5,000+ voice apps built through the Voiceflow platform, get an inside look on best practices and trends in prototyping and building a voice experience for the car.
3:00 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #453, Thursday January 16
Breaking the Habit:
How Voice Keeps Your Phone in Your Pocket and Your Eyes on the Road
Mihai Antonescu (Product Manager, Mercedes Benz R&D North America)
Robert Bruchhardt (Staff Software Engineer, Mercedes Benz R&D North America)
What is the first thing you do when you get into your car? In this session we want to share how we are breaking the habit of drivers who first reach for their phone when they enter their vehicle. We are going to elaborate on how we use voice as a disruptive power and what role it plays in the automotive industry. So, what is the first thing you do when you enter a Mercedes? Join us if you want to find out!
VOICE + HEALTHCARE:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #434, Thursday January 16
Voice + Mobile = Reduction of Administrative Burden on Physicians
Pat Williams (CEO, iScribe Health)
Electronic Health Record (EHR) documentation requirements are clearly the #1 cause of physician burnout and the dehumanization of the patient encounter experience in healthcare today. This session will describe how we got here (government-mandated adoption of poorly designed systems with no ability to communicate with one another) and the opportunity for mobile and voice recognition technology to restore the joy of practicing medicine.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #444, Thursday January 16
Speech as a Biomarker: A Next Phase for Voice
Henry O'Connell (CEO, Canary Speech)
By 2025, the global digital biomarker market is predicted to reach $2.5 billion. Canary Speech has a new and patented approach to bring voice to the forefront of digital biomarkers. Henry O'Connell, co-founder and CEO, will explain how Canary Speech aims to replaces subjective measurements in the clinical setting with a standard approach, using voice, to objectively measure critical behavioral and medical data points.
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Session #454, Thursday January 16
How Voice Will Revolutionize Digital Healthcare ... in the Home
Stuart Patterson (Co-Founder & CEO, LifePod Solutions)
Healthcare is moving to the home. Research shows there are over 117m people over the age of 50 who need assistance in the U.S. … and only 45m unpaid friends and family caregivers to provide that assistance. Meanwhile, 50% of all employees in the U.S. expect that they will be caring for an elder friend or relative in the next 5 years! So, the need for connected telehealth services in the home that serve the elderly, patients with chronic conditions, rural households and their caregivers has never been more acute. Stu Patterson will discuss the remarkable results of LifePod’s 18 months of tests with healthcare payer/providers, senior living facilities, and family caregivers, and explain how “proactive-voice” – where the service speaks to the care recipient without first being woken up – provides personalized, holistic care around the clock … while simultaneously providing invaluable monitoring data and peace of mind to the caregiving team.
3:35 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #464, Thursday January 16
Can Digital Voice Assistants Cross the Chasm in Healthcare?
David Box (Director, US Healthcare, Macadamian)
Digital voice assistants are finding their way into our lives at a very fast pace, with new applications and use cases evolving daily. Research suggests that non-healthcare applications have achieved mass adoption while usage in healthcare settings is still firmly with the early adopters. This session will discuss healthcare and non-healthcare adoption rates and analyze where healthcare market opportunities exist. Additionally, we will review real-world healthcare use cases for digital voice assistants.
VOICE + MONEY:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #435, Thursday January 16
PANEL: The State of Conversational Commerce
Moderator: Bradley Metrock
Dan Miller (Lead Analyst and Founder, Opus Research)
Michele Tivey (CEO, Payometry)
Conversational commerce - being able to transact with retail and financial institutions via conversational interfaces - is poised for a major breakout in 2020. This panel will discuss some of the benefits we'll begin to see this year as this technology evolves, as well as some of the remaining hurdles in the way of even greater progress.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #445, Thursday January 16
Financial Sonic Branding: What Registers
Emily Binder (Chief Strategist / Voice Marketing Lead, Beetle Moment Marketing)
Hear which brands in investing, banking, and financial literacy have the most successful sonic branding and why it matters. Emily Binder will cover strong and interesting examples of sonic identity for transactions, audio content, and advertising.
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Session #455, Thursday January 16
High Stakes Conversations: Using Voice in Emotionally-Fraught Industries
Diana Deibel (Lead Designer, Grand Studio)
We all know VUIs can be used to help scale customer service and guidance. But what do you do when you're in an emotionally-fraught industry like finance or health, where the stakes of the conversations can quickly escalate into an emotional scenario? Lead VUI Designer Diana Deibel will walk you through what triggers negative emotions for customers in finance, how that affects them, and how you can use the strengths of voice within the finance sector, without the pitfalls. She will take you step by step through how to identify and scope a successful use case, validating that idea with users, and which design considerations to focus on.
3:35 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #465, Thursday January 16
Interactive Narrative within Voice-First Ecosystem
Jonathon Myers (CEO, Earplay)
VOICE + GAMING:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #436, Thursday January 16
Voice-Enabled Games in the Car: What's Down the Road
Niko Vuori (CEO, Drivetime.FM)
110 million Americans commute to work solo by car every day, spending a staggering 30 billion captive hours a year in their automobiles with nothing but passive audio to entertain them. The voice-first revolution has enabled interactive audio entertainment for the first time - meaning we can now play games while you drive. Come and hear from the founder of automotive voice gaming pioneer Drivetime.fm about what the future of in-car infotainment sounds like.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #446, Thursday January 16
PANEL: The State of Voice-First Gaming
Moderated by Sarah Andrew Wilson (Chief Content Officer, Matchbox.io); Gal Shenar (Founder, Stoked Skills); Jess Thornhill (Product Manager, Volley); Jon Myers (CEO, Earplay)
Gaming is a big opportunity in the voice-first era. Hear industry experts from Earplay, Matchbox.io, Stoked Skills, and Volley share strategies, design insights, and visions for the future.
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Session #456, Thursday January 16
Voice's Intersection with Modern Video Games
Adrian Simple (Editor, The Gaming Observer)
How has voice technology influenced the mainstream gaming industry, and where will it thrive? There are a number of voice-first gaming projects, but none have caught widespread attention. Similarly, several game developers have attempted a consumer-driven voice experience to little success. Adrian Simple has reported on video games every single day for over a year, and in this session he explores what needs to be done to close the gap between two thriving industries.
3:35 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #466, Thursday January 16
How To Create Great Gaming Voice Content
Dyung Ngo (Co-Founder, CogniVocal)
Learning a new technology is extremely challenging, especially a new category as Voice AI. Dyung Ngo will share his story as a self-taught developer who overcame challenges to build a fresh new voice game, and then becoming a finalist in the Samsung Bixby DevJam. He’ll also share his experience on joining the Bixby Premier Developer Program.
BIXBY PARTNER SESSIONS:
1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Session #437, Thursday January 16
Bixby Premier Developers Panel
Moderator: David Gene Oh (Senior Director for Bixby, Samsung)
Panel: Steven Arkonovich (Developer, Big Sky); Rachel Batish (VP Product, AudioBurst); Mark Tucker (Senior Architect, Soar.com)
The Samsung Bixby Premier Developer program recognizes the best developers in voice AI. Come join us for a fireside chat with Audioburst’s Rachel Batish, Big Sky’s Steven Arkonovich, and Soar.com’s Mark Tucker to discuss the benefits of joining the program.
2:25 PM - 2:55 PM
Session #447, Thursday January 16
Voice's Impact on the Audio Business - And What It Means for
Consumers, Advertisers, and Technologists
J.D. Crowley (Chief Digital Officer) and Michael Soderlund (Product Manager), RADIO.COM)
From the development of new technologies, to innovation in storytelling, Audio has quickly become the most dynamic and exciting space in media today. From consumers to brands, the demand for audio content and engagement is exploding. So what is Voice’s impact on the space? Come find out – whether you’re a technologist, a creator, or a marketer, learn how Voice and Audio work together today, and what’s likely to come next.
3:00 PM - 4:05 PM
Session #457, Thursday January 16
How Voice Is Revolutionizing Home Cooking
Kevin Yu (CEO & Founder, SideChef)
Hands-free recipe guidance is one of the most practical ways consumers can interact with their voice assistant. In this session, SideChef CEO/Founder Kevin Yu will walk you through the impact voice assistants are having on the home cooking journey, and how SideChef’s 16,000 recipes made the transition to voice. He’ll discuss the revolutionary model that provides value to partners across industries, and how cooking with Bixby is the ticket to consistent usage of the voice assistant.
4:05 PM - 4:35 PM
Session #471, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
PANEL: Open Voice: Giving Voice to Mobile Apps and Websites
Moderator: Bradley Metrock
Mike Tatum (CEO, Spokestack); Jess Thornhill (Product Manager, Volley); Daniel Tyreus (Co-Founder & President, Soundcheck.ai)
Voice technology has a pivotal role to play in the continued evolution of both mobile applications as well as the web itself. This panel will explore what we can expect to see, when we can expect to see it, and some of the challenges in the way of voice's integration into two primary areas of software development today.
4:35 PM - 5:05 PM
Session #472, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
Building Speech from Scratch: Creating Alexa to Founding Cobalt
Jeff Adams (CEO) and Catherine Breslin, Ph.D. (Director, Solutions Architect), Cobalt Speech)
Voice technology has dramatically improved in recent years and is rapidly being adopted by consumers. At Cobalt Speech, we get a bird’s eye view of the commercial landscape, see shifts in underlying technology from the research community, and hear first-hand what organisations are building. In this session we’ll tell the story behind Cobalt and shine a light on some of the broader industry trends that we expect to continue into the next decade.
5:05 PM - 5:30 PM
Session #473, Thursday January 16 MAIN STAGE
CLOSING KEYNOTE
Kane Simms (Co-Founder & CEO, VUX World)
Come join us in the ballroom for the final talk of the conference. Bring a drink, relax and see the event off with a smile.
5:30 PM PROJECT VOICE CLOSING SOCIAL
Unknown Caller Bar, 715 Cherry Street
Open to all Project Voice attendees with badges
Presented by Spokestack
Open to all attendees
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