Related papers: Identifying synthetic voices qualities for convers…
Using social robots and virtual agents (VAs) as interfaces for health monitoring systems for older adults offers the possibility of more engaging interactions that can support long-term health and well-being. While robots are characterized…
Our work addresses the challenges older adults face with commercial Voice Assistants (VAs), notably in conversation breakdowns and error handling. Traditional methods of collecting user experiences-usage logs and post-hoc interviews-do not…
In this paper, we present a methodology for the development of embodied conversational agents for social virtual worlds. The agents provide multimodal communication with their users in which speech interaction is included. Our proposal…
The use of digital resources has been increasing in every instance of todays society, being it in business or even ludic purposes. Despite such ever increasing use of technologies as interfaces, in all fields, it seems that it lacks the…
The rise of generative AI (GenAI) chatbots accessible via conversational interfaces is transforming digital interactions and holds economic promise. However, these tools might deepen existing inequalities -- not only through uneven,…
The Japanese notion of "kawaii" or expressions of cuteness, vulnerability, and/or charm is a global cultural export. Work has explored kawaii-ness as a design feature and factor of user experience in the visual appearance, nonverbal…
The ability to accurately recognize an individual's face with respect to human aging factor holds significant importance for various private as well as government sectors such as customs and public security bureaus, passport office, and…
Smart voice assistants (SVAs) have become embedded in the daily lives of youth, introducing complex privacy challenges due to always-on listening, shared device usage, and opaque data practices. This study applies the Privacy-Ethics…
Generative AI now produces photorealistic portraits that circulate widely in social and newslike contexts. Human ability to distinguish real from synthetic faces is time-sensitive because image generators continue to improve while public…
The capacity to create realistic virtual humans has progressed significantly, and such characters can be found in many applications across entertainment, education and health. As an essential element of interactive virtual humans,…
Despite significant improvements in automatic speech recognition and spoken language understanding - human interaction with Virtual Personal Assistants (VPAs) through speech remains irregular and sporadic. According to recent studies,…
Large Language Models (LLMs) have demonstrated remarkable capabilities in conversational tasks. Embodying an LLM as a virtual human allows users to engage in face-to-face social interactions in Virtual Reality. However, the influence of…
Conversational agents have been gaining increasing popularity in recent years. Influenced by the widespread adoption of task-oriented agents such as Apple Siri and Amazon Alexa, these agents are being deployed into various applications to…
Perceptual voice quality dimensions describe key characteristics of atypical speech and other speech modulations. Here we develop and evaluate voice quality models for seven voice and speech dimensions (intelligibility, imprecise…
The appearance of a virtual avatar significantly influences its perceived appropriateness and the user's experience, particularly in healthcare applications. This study analyzed interactions with six avatars of varying characteristics in a…
The growing capabilities of large language models and multimodal systems have spurred interest in voice-first AI assistants, yet existing benchmarks are inadequate for evaluating the full range of these systems' capabilities. We introduce…
Most online information sources are text-based and in Western Languages like English. However, many new and first time users of the Internet are in contexts with low English proficiency and are unable to access vital information online.…
Voice based Intelligent Virtual Assistants (IVAs) promise to improve healthcare management and Quality of Life (QOL) by introducing the paradigm of hands free and eye free interactions. However, there has been little understanding regarding…
This article evaluates a first experience of generating artificial children's voices with a Costa Rican accent, using the technique of statistical parametric speech synthesis based on Hidden Markov Models. The process of recording the voice…
This paper introduces a new large consent-driven dataset aimed at assisting in the evaluation of algorithmic bias and robustness of computer vision and audio speech models in regards to 11 attributes that are self-provided or labeled by…