Kotoba Technologies' Voice AI Model Koto Powers Japanese Version of Salesforce's Agentforce Voice

Kotoba Technologies Empowers Salesforces’s Agentforce Voice with Koto

In an impressive stride for voice AI technology, Kotoba Technologies, a leading innovator in real-time speech AI, has officially announced the adoption of its proprietary voice base model, Koto, by Salesforce Japan. This integration is part of Salesforce’s autonomous AI agent platform, Agentforce, specifically enhancing the Japanese version of its voice interaction feature, Agentforce Voice.

The implementation of Agentforce Voice marks a significant transformation in existing automated voice response (IVR) systems allowing AI agents to autonomously handle customer interactions over phone channels. Beyond just phone operations, this feature is adaptable for web and mobile applications, illustrating the versatility of contemporary customer service solutions. Starting August 7, Agentforce Voice will provide high-quality, fluid Japanese voice interactions that include proper honorifics and other nuances unique to Japanese dialogue, thanks to Koto.

Addressing Human Resource Shortages in Contact Centers

Despite the widespread use of telephone inquiries in customer service, many companies face significant challenges such as long wait times and impersonal IVR systems that impair customer satisfaction. Furthermore, Japan is currently experiencing a severe shortage of skilled personnel in contact centers. Consequently, the automation of voice interactions through AI has become a pivotal focus for many businesses looking to enhance customer experiences.

Japanese, with its complex levels of politeness, conversational phrases, and context-sensitive nuances, requires an advanced level of responsiveness from voice AI systems. A successful implementation of natural voice dialogue in a business context hinges on ultra-low latency and high-precision speech recognition (STT) and text-to-speech (TTS), combined with a voice model deeply attuned to the roots of the language.

Introducing the Koto Voice Base Model

Koto is an end-to-end speech AI model developed exclusively by Kotoba for ultra-low latency and real-time speech processing. In addition to its speech recognition and synthesis capabilities tailored for AI agents and voice interfaces, Koto also supports speech-to-speech translation for simultaneous interpreting, excelling in East Asian languages like Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. Its technology adapts seamlessly to various deployment environments, responding flexibly to diverse corporate needs and security contexts.

The integration of Koto into Agentforce Voice empowers a natural Japanese voice dialogue system across telephone channels, offering companies a revolutionary method for customer interaction. As Kotoba is also backed by funding from Salesforce Ventures, the strategic partnership continues to deepen across both capital and operational endeavors.

Expert Insights

Noriyuki Kojima, CEO, and co-founder of Kotoba Technologies, shared, “Japanese requires a high degree of adaptability from voice AI due to its unique expressions and contextual subtleties. Koto was designed to engage with these linguistic attributes, allowing for low-latency and natural voice interactions. The adoption of our technology by Salesforce's world-leading platform, Agentforce Voice, affirms that our East Asian language voice AI has reached an operational threshold fit for enterprises. We remain committed to supporting Japanese businesses in providing natural and reliable customer experiences through our collaboration with Salesforce.”

Comment from Salesforce Japan

Commenting on this crucial initiative, Atsushi Mito, Senior Executive Officer at Salesforce Japan, remarked, “As the shortage of contact center personnel intensifies in Japan, Agentforce Voice provides a way for AI agents to deliver a more seamless customer experience via phone communications. The adoption of Kotoba Technologies’ voice base model, Koto, enables us to achieve natural and high-quality voice interactions in Japanese. Salesforce will continue to support Japanese customers in realizing innovative customer experiences through collaboration with Kotoba Technologies.”

Future Vision

Kotoba aims to break down language barriers and pioneer a future where language becomes borderless through the ongoing research and social implementation of its voice base model, Koto. Following the collaboration with Salesforce, the company plans to expand the provision of multilingual voice AI solutions, not only in the realm of contact centers and AI agents but also in various enterprise sectors, covering languages such as Japanese, Korean, and Chinese.

Company Overview

Kotoba Technologies
Headquarters: Levi's Plaza, 1160 Battery St, Suite 100, San Francisco, CA 94111, USA
R&D Center: 1-6-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
CEO & Co-founder: Noriyuki Kojima
Business: Development and provision of real-time voice translation and voice AI base models
Total Funding: 3.7 billion yen
Founded: May 2023
Website: kotoba.tech
Twitter: @kotoba_tech