By: Karen Scates

Although Voice AI has arrived as a “must have” technology for many products and industries, many brands are just getting started with using it. The good news is that there are now a wide variety of U.S. and global conferences designed to bring engineers, thought leaders, entrepreneurs, academics and vendors together.

Voice AI is changing and improving rapidly and new industries are coming into the fold every day. So, while you can, find opportunities to learn about and be inspired by this emerging technology.

Here are our recommendations for voice tech conferences to attend in 2020.

U.S. Voice Tech Conferences

CES – January 7-10

Las Vegas, NV
CES has long been the biggest stage for innovation. This year, as in years past, companies pioneering new technologies and applications showcased their products with snazzy, next-generation displays. This year’s conference had a dedicated auto industry area that featured vehicle tech, including self-driving vehicles, concept cars, and connected vehicles. Since voice assistants are at the center of the swift advancements in auto, it was heavily featured at the conference. If you missed it this year, catch it next time. And here’s a quick video highlight of our partnership with Honda at CES 2020.

Project Voice – January 13-17

Chattanooga, TN
Focused solely on the current and future state of voice tech, Project Voice is a must-attend conference for executives, marketers, developers, strategists, consultants, VCs, media, and industry analysts. This conference is also the home of the Project Voice Awards that honor global achievements in voice.

Experts, thought leaders, and technologists all gather to discuss the challenges and opportunities of emerging voice tech in industries and markets around the globe. This year there will be a special event — a roast of Bret Kinsella — which promises to be fun!

Conversational Interaction Conference – February 10-11

San Jose, CA
Want to get into the nuts and bolts of voice tech? The Conversational Interaction Conference is a great event for you. Attendees will get practical advice about the state of the technology as well as tools and services to help them create a voice user interface. Case studies will be presented to help highlight best practices and pitfalls to avoid.

Superbot – March 31

San Francisco, CA
Billed as “The premier conference for chatbots, voice assistants, and AI,” Dashbot’s SuperBot brings together people from all aspects of voice. Sessions focus on trends, best practices, and various insights for developers, practitioners, executives, investors, and marketers. Conference attendees will hear from leading voice industry experts.

Voice of the Car Summit – April 7-8

San Jose, CA
The name of this conference says it all. Centered around the intersection of voice AI and the automotive industry, attendees get insights into the future of voice in-car, best practices, and a peek at which automakers are leading the way through innovations in voice. The two-day event is presented by VoiceFirst.FM. Session topics are heavily weighted toward case studies and panels of experts addressing some of the greatest challenges of in-car voice assistants and related tech in the automotive industry.

Connections: Connected Home Conference – May 19-21

San Francisco, CA
In addition to voice interfaces, Connections explores all the aspects of the “connected home.” Heavily attended by people in the smart home industry, the conference also attracts home security industry executives and manufacturers of the hardware and software that go into smart devices in homes. The sessions are a mix of market research, analysis, and industry insights addressing the complexities of the digital living space.

VOICE Summit – October 5-8

Washington, DC
“The world’s largest voice event” will take place in Washington, DC this year and features three events within the conference, the Voicehacks Hackathon, StartupEXPO, and VOICE Summit Awards Dinner. Boasting five thousand attendees and a media reach of 355 million, VOICE Summit has earned the reputation as the premier voice AI conference. Events and sessions explore voice tech from a variety of perspectives relevant to enterprise brands and startups alike.

International Voice Tech Conferences

For those interested in a more global perspective, there are some excellent conferences outside of the U.S. as well. Here are our picks for international and online conferences for 2020:

Voice Global – May 4

Online
This 24-hour livestream conference targets vertical industries, including healthcare, fintech, entertainment, and transportation. Topics range from design and engineering, to user experience and marketing. This free conference is a presentation by VoiceSummit.ai. In years past the event has hosted 500 speakers and 100,000 viewers. If you’re interested in getting in on the conversations currently occurring in voice tech, this is an easy and free way to get the inside scoop.

Connected Consumer Summit: voice. – May 18

London, England
As part of the connected consumer series, voice. focuses on the emergence of voice technology in the commercial world. This conference is dedicated to helping brands understand the benefits of voice and providing practical advice and examples through case studies, panel discussions, and development stories. Information gathered at this conference is designed to help business leaders and developers navigate the growing world of voice AI. This year, speakers from a variety of consumer-focused industries, including Pandora, BBC, and Vixen Labs will provide unique insights and how-tos for attendees.

All About Voice – November 20

Munich, Germany
“Connect, share, and learn” is the promise of this conference. Attendees are invited to learn best practices, meet others in the industry, stay in touch with trends, and take a deep dive into the smart speaker environment. Although it’s in Germany, the conference sessions are presented in English.

ConverCon – TBD

Dublin, Ireland
The Conversational Interface Conference will be back in 2020, we’re just not sure when exactly. To find out more, sign in to the website to get updates as they are available. In the meantime, we can speak from experience when we say this is a great conference. Themes for 2020 include voice-first horizons, conversational UX considerations, conversational AI, digital strategy implementations and discontents, privacy, security, and ethics, and cultural context. If last year is any indication, this year’s conference promises to be even more entertaining and informative.

VoiceTech Paris – TBD

Paris, France
Parlez-vous Francais? Non? Then VoiceTech Paris is probably not for you. However, if your organization has a global footprint and offices in Paris, you might want to attend this event in 2020. Last year, the conference was held in November, so look for its return in the Fall. If it follows last year’s format, topics will include trends and the current state of voice tech, regulations and legal considerations, case studies and applications, and round tables on best practices.

Whether you intend on speaking, exhibiting, or simply attending, these conferences are great opportunities to network and keep your finger on the pulse of the rapidly changing ecosystem of voice AI. When you do attend, look for SoundHound Inc. We’ll likely be there as speakers, exhibitors, or attendees joining in on the voice AI conversation.

Note: This is not an exhaustive list as we couldn’t include every single voice event planned for 2020. If there are other Voice Tech events you’re excited about, please add a comment below and let us know.

Karen Scates is a storyteller with a passion for helping others through content. Argentine tango, good books and great wine round out Karen’s interests.