Voice recognition research is by no means a young science. Back in the 1950's IBM computers began pumping out statistical correlations between "sounds and the words they represent".
By 1964 Big Blue had created a "shoe box recogniser" to recognise spoken digits.
Suffice to say, the technology has been around for a while - so why is it only recently becoming visible?
Two factors: cost and integration.
Clive Summerfield, a speech recognition technology consultant, believes it won't be long before speech recognition technology breaks into the main-stream applications market.
"Speech is a natural-interface technology, but at this stage the price point is such that it is only applicable in high-value applications where you are using speech recognition to replace human agents," Summerfield says. "In many cases you are touching the customers at the business' most sensitive point, you cannot afford to get it wrong, because everything you do will have a significant impact on the way the business is perceived."
While the software systems are now capable of recognising millions of words - converting these to text and even reproducing them in an entirely new language - a poorly implemented solution could have a profoundly damaging effect on any company.
"Typically people think of speech recognition as a replacement for touchtone technology, but it is a very different interface," Summerfield says. "You need people like linguists who are far more attuned with the best ways user interfaces are put together, and can replicate a dialogue the user might have with an agent."
As for increased integration with consumer applications, IBM's Gray says it is just a matter of time before products begin to become more prevalent.
"We are at the stage where the basic technology exists, and will continue to develop based on commercial need," Gray said. "Voice has the potential to fill the void between the Web and mobile access, and the next phase of development has the potential to mix speech and display response, providing multiple ways to deliver the same information."
