Our Work - Get Involved
Voice could soon become a common interface for every digital device. For consumer-facing industries, voice will significantly reshape customer relationships and lift corporate productivity, accessibility, and inclusion. But what started as the world’s fastest adopted consumer technology may fall well short of its potential for acceptance and enterprise value. Research points to a “trust gap” that raises critical questions of privacy, data security, ease of use, brand protection, interoperability, and equal and unbiased access for individual and organizational users alike.
A proven way to close the trust gap – one pursued in the early days of other technologies – is through the communal development and adoption of standards and usage guidelines.
To those who want to work on resolving those gaps, we welcome you to participate in our projects at the Open Voice Network.
Standards
The Open Voice Network's Technical Standards Initiatives
To make voice assistance worthy of user trust, the Open Voice Network (OVON) is pursuing technical standards development in four areas: 1) interoperability between voice agents, 2) voice-based findability and discoverability, 3) user privacy specific to voice, and 4) data security specific to voice. We are also researching the need for technical standards in synthetic voice development and identification and voice-based authentication.
Building an open source future
Voice Technology Innovations
Interoperability Initiative
How might voice agents of different platforms or technical parentage share dialogues, data, context, and controls?
Discovery & Findability Services
How might voice users confidently find and discover preferred voice agent/application destinations in a worldwide voice web?
How might organizations protect their brand names and brand experiences in a worldwide voice web?
User Privacy Initiative
How might current and envisioned voice technologies threaten individual privacy and create personal and institutional harm?
How might practitioners of voice technology (from developers to organizations) be guided to respect established privacy rights and earn constituent trust?
How might commercial users of voice protect their data and that of their constituents?
Voice Data Security
What threats to organizational data security currently exist (and will emerge) with the emergent adoption of voice technology?
What steps must organizational security officers now take?
Is there research now in development that will guide and inform security officers for the future world of voice?
Synthetic Voice Study
What is the operative definition of synthetic voice? How is it created?
What are the benefits and risks of synthetic voice? Who are the primary constituents and stakeholders of Synthetic Voice?
What technical standards should be created for the benefit of synthetic voice creators, participants, and consumers?
Voice Authentication Study
What is the current state of password-free biometric authentication? What might voice learn from other biometric authentication processes?
For consumers and developers of voice experiences and services, what is a best-case (UX and security) authentication process?
What technical standards should be created for the benefit of voice-centric authentication creators, participants, and consumers?
Industries
Helping Businesses Succeed With Voice
The Open Voice Network has formed several key industry groups to lead our research on the most valuable voice-enabled opportunities — and how to get them right.
Aligning Consumer Expectation With Business Practices
Getting People On The Same Page
Commerce Community
The Open Voice Network explores the value of voice technology in the retail and consumer goods industries as well as the why, the what, the how, and the legal requirements associated with the ethical use of conversational AI in retail and consumer products.
Health, Wellness, & Life Sciences Community
The Open Voice Network Health, Wellness, and Life Sciences Community (HWLSC) will enable consumers and health, wellness, and life sciences professionals to improve the continuum of health through the adoption of open, standards-based voice technology and privacy-protected analysis of voice-based data.
Media & Entertainment Community
The Open Voice Network explores the value of voice in the media and entertainment industries by examining the impact and reach of the technologies on privacy, security, and enjoyment.
Education Steering Team Community
The Open Voice Network explores the value and legal requirements for ethical use of voice technology in the classroom and on campus.
How You Can Join The Open Voice Network
The industry surrounding voice technology is at an inflection point
Opportunities to get involved within the Open Voice Network are open to individuals willing to give of their time, network, industry knowledge, and resources through collaboration, advocacy, and development of standards.
Enterprises are invited to join the Open Voice Network as Sponsoring Members by providing financial sponsorship as well as executive leadership.
01. Sponsorships
Sponsor research that will explore, develop, and assert standards and open source voice technologies.
02. Friends
Smaller firms & independent practitioners in voice design, strategy, & technology who endorse the Open Voice Network.
03. Communities
Communities are open to everyone and there’s no charge or membership fee to participate.
04. Ambassadors
Ambassadors of notable influence support the Open Voice Network through public support and promotion.
Sponsorships
Available to Enterprise & Public Entities
If you are interested in becoming a Sponsoring Member of the Open Voice Network check out the Frequently Asked Questions below where sponsorship tiers are explained in detail
FAQ
Contributions make open source voice a reality - faster!
Is your enterprise or organization interested in contributing to the Open Voice Network’s mission? We encourage you to become a Sponsoring Member of the Open Voice Network.
Sponsoring Members are enterprises that provide financial support and executive leadership to the Open Voice Network. Sponsorship is open worldwide to enterprises and public entities, as well as those that advise or represent such enterprises and entities.
$100,000 USD per annum | Total of $300,000 USD across a three-year commitment
The Open Voice Network Platinum Sponsors serve on the Open Voice Network Steering Committee
Serve on and guide other Open Voice Network decision-making bodies
Advise and guide Open Voice standards-centric research
$50,000 USD per annum | Total of $150,000 USD across a three-year commitment
Represented on the Open Voice Network Steering Committee
May participate in other Open Voice Network committees
$25,000 USD per annum | Total of $75,000 USD across a three-year commitment
Active voice in standards decision-making and Open Voice Network outreach
$7,500 USD per annum | Total of $22,500 USD across a three-year commitment
Active voice in standards decision-making and Open Voice Network outreach
The Linux Foundation offers crowdfunding support for the Open Voice Network via their website. The Open Voice Network is devoted to the development of technical standards and usage guidelines that will make voice worthy of user trust—open, standards based, interoperable, privacy minded, and data protected.
You can make a donation to the Open Voice Network via The Linux Foundation at this link - Crowdfunding.
