The instant messaging social network aims to solve situations where message recipients are deaf and is working on the ability to transcribe voice notes to text so they can use their sense of sight.
So far, some improvements to WhatsApp have included the ability to change the playback speed.
One of the first concerns is Facebook's data processing. Audio-to-text transcription requires a recognition engine to analyze the audio and then transcribe it. Does this mean that Facebook reads the message? Although the company has an AI trained for this, it won't use it in this case.
The solution is that the recognition would be performed using proprietary tools that the device already has. In this case, we see that an iPhone is being used, so a message appears indicating that Apple's voice recognition is being used. The message also warns that the data may be sent to Apple to improve the system. This message is specific to iOS and other apps already use it.
Once the user accepts the condition, a new section will appear in the app containing the transcribed messages, which can be read. It will also be possible to jump to specific parts of the message, as the transcribed text is divided into small, time-stamped sections.
At the moment, the feature is in development; we'll have to wait to see it implemented in the app. It remains to be seen whether it actually arrives and the project isn't abandoned, although, given that it's a relatively easy technology to implement and already available on mobile devices, it's likely we'll soon be enjoying reading messages.