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The conversational search task aims to enable a user to resolve information needs via natural language dialogue with an agent. In this paper, we aim to develop a conceptual framework of the actions and intents of users and agents explaining…
Voice applications (voice apps) are a key element in Voice Assistant ecosystems such as Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, as they provide assistants with a wide range of capabilities that users can invoke with a voice command. Most voice…
Conversational search systems, such as Google Assistant and Microsoft Cortana, enable users to interact with search systems in multiple rounds through natural language dialogues. Evaluating such systems is very challenging given that any…
When deployed, AI agents will encounter problems that are beyond their autonomous problem-solving capabilities. Leveraging human assistance can help agents overcome their inherent limitations and robustly cope with unfamiliar situations. We…
Search systems on the Web rely on user input to generate relevant results. Since early information retrieval systems, users are trained to issue keyword searches and adapt to the language of the system. Recent research has shown that users…
Intelligent agents have great potential as facilitators of group conversation among older adults. However, little is known about how to design agents for this purpose and user group, especially in terms of agent embodiment. To this end, we…
Conversational interfaces that allow for intuitive and comprehensive access to digitally stored information remain an ambitious goal. In this thesis, we lay foundations for designing conversational search systems by analyzing the…
Conversational search offers an easier and faster alternative to conventional web search, while having downsides like lack of source verification. Research has examined performance disparities between these two systems in different…
How do analysis goals and context affect exploratory data analysis (EDA)? To investigate this question, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 data analysts. We characterize common exploration goals: profiling (assessing data…
Large Language Models have been increasingly employed in the creation of Virtual Assistants due to their ability to generate human-like text and handle complex inquiries. While these models hold great promise, challenges such as…
We generalized a voice morphing algorithm capable of handling temporally variable, multiple-attributes, and multiple instances. The generalized morphing provides a new strategy for investigating speech diversity. However, excessive…
The rapid pace of recent research in AI has been driven in part by the presence of fast and challenging simulation environments. These environments often take the form of games; with tasks ranging from simple board games, to competitive…
Mobile access to information is a considerable problem for many users, especially to information found on the Web. In this paper, we explore how a voice-controlled service, accessible by telephone, could support mobile users' needs for…
Successful job search results from job seekers' well-shaped social communication. While well-known differences in communication exist between people with autism and neurotypicals, little is known about how people with autism collaborate…
As many of us in the information retrieval (IR) research community know and appreciate, search is far from being a solved problem. Millions of people struggle with tasks on search engines every day. Often, their struggles relate to the…
With the rise of voice-enabled artificial intelligence (AI) systems, quantitative survey researchers have access to a new data-collection mode: AI telephone surveying. By using AI to conduct phone interviews, researchers can scale…
Searching sounds by text labels is often difficult, as text descriptions cannot describe the audio content in detail. Query by vocal imitation bridges such gap and provides a novel way to sound search. Several algorithms for sound search by…
Today, users ask Large language models (LLMs) as assistants to answer queries that require external knowledge; they ask about the weather in a specific city, about stock prices, and even about where specific locations are within their…
In general, self help systems are being increasingly deployed by service based industries because they are capable of delivering better customer service and increasingly the switch is to voice based self help systems because they provide a…
Wearable devices such as AI glasses are transforming voice assistants into always-available, hands-free collaborators that integrate seamlessly with daily life, but they also introduce challenges like egocentric audio affected by motion and…