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The Japanese computer giant SoftBank has announced the development of software with artificial intelligence (AI) that aims to soften the tone of voice of angry customers calling call centers. The company hopes that this technology will help reduce employee stress and improve the overall customer experience.
“We are working on developing a solution that can convert the customer’s voice into a calm conversational tone and offer it to workers using AI-enabled voice processing and emotion recognition technology,” SoftBank said in a press release. “With this solution, we aim to maintain good relationships with customers through solid communication, while ensuring the psychological well-being of workers.”
SoftBank’s initiative comes at a time when Harassment of service workers has been on the rise in Japan. A recent survey by the Japanese union UA Zensen found that Nearly half of the 33,000 workers surveyed had been harassed by customers in the past two years. Incidents ranged from verbal insults and intimidation to demands that employees kneel and apologize.
The Japanese government is taking steps to address this problem and is considering a new legislation that would strengthen protections for service sector workers, as reported by Reuters. SoftBank hopes its AI software can help reduce the incidence of harassment and create a safer and more positive work environment for employees.
The company plans to begin testing the technology internally and externally during the next fiscal year, with the goal of ccommercialize it at the end of March 2026. If successful, SoftBank’s solution could be a model for other companies facing similar challenges with irate customers: harassment and workplace stress can lead to high employee turnover and decreased productivity. AI technology can help reduce these costs by creating a more positive work environment in call centers.
THE NATION
