AI + Voice: The UX of the Future?
Speech is how our brains are wired to process thoughts. Voice-first systems align with this natural flow, making knowledge work faster and more intuitive. The question isn’t if voice becomes our primary interface, but how quickly we adapt.
I had this moment recently that completely changed how I think about voice interfaces. I was simultaneously taking notes while trying to change a diaper (not recommended), and I realized something: I was speaking to myself while typing. It hit me - we naturally process our thoughts through speech, yet we've trained ourselves to translate that into typing.
Why?
The Science Behind Voice
Here's something fascinating: Speech evolved in humans at least 100,000 years ago, while typing is barely 150 years old. Our brains are literally wired for speech. When we type, we're adding an extra cognitive translation layer that actually slows down our thinking process.
Here are some hard numbers:
- The average person speaks at 125-150 words per minute (Virtual Speech)
- Average typing speeds are just 37-44 words per minute (ASAP)
- Modern voice recognition accuracy has hit 98.5% accuracy rate (Floatbot)
What's even more interesting is what happens in our brains. Research shows that speech uses some of our most developed neural pathways, while typing engages more recent, less optimized cognitive processes.
