Talk by voice

You can talk to UFO out loud instead of typing. Call one agent in a channel, or call the whole workspace and have it find channels, read them, post for you and hand work to agents. Your workspace turns voice on once, with its own key, in Settings → Live voice.

#Turn on live voice for your workspace

A workspace admin or owner does this once. Until it's on, the voice buttons don't show.

1. Get an API key for the engine you want:
   • GPT-Live (OpenAI) — an OpenAI API key (platform.openai.com/api-keys).
   • Gemini 3.8 Live (Google) — a Google AI Studio API key (aistudio.google.com/apikey). A free-tier key works too.
2. Add the key: Settings → Credentials → + Add. Keep Service key, pick OpenAI or Google Gemini as the service, paste the key and press Add credential.
3. Open Settings → Live voice. Choose the Engine, then pick your key under API key.
4. Press Save.

The screen then says Live voice is on, with the engine. The hint under the engine menu shows roughly what a minute costs. The provider bills the key you picked, not UFO.

#Call an agent in a channel

Use this to talk with the agent of the channel you're in.

1. Open the channel.
2. Press the waveform button in the message box (Talk live — voice conversation with the agent).
3. Allow the microphone if asked, then start talking.

A call card opens above the channel with the agent's face and live captions. Ask anything, or tell the agent what to do. When the request needs real work, it's posted in the channel as your message, the agent works on it as usual, and the voice tells you the answer when it's done. A small note on the card says what happened — Sent to the channel or Answered from memory.

The waveform button doesn't show in human-only channels.

#Talk to the whole workspace

Press Live at the top of the left bar. This call isn't tied to one channel, so you can ask about anything in the workspace. It shows as a thin bar across the top of the window — tap the captions to open the full conversation — and it stays while you move between channels.

What you can ask:

Messages it posts and work it hands off appear in the channel as your own messages. When an agent finishes work you handed off, the voice tells you its answer. Notes on the card list what happened, such as Posted to general, Opened design or Added to-do: ….

#End a call

• Say so: "That's all, end the call." The voice says goodbye and hangs up.
• Or press End on the call card or bar.
• A call also ends by itself after 10 minutes of silence. While an agent is still working on your request, that doesn't count as silence.

Only one call runs at a time — starting a new one ends the old one.

#Make a quick call from anywhere

In the UFO desktop app, press ⇧⌘1 on a Mac or Ctrl+Shift+1 on Windows. It works even when UFO is in the background or hidden. Say what you need; the call hangs up by itself once that's done, and UFO goes back to where it was. Press the shortcut again to end it early.

The shortcut also shows when you hover over Live in the left bar.

#Call from your Android phone

In the UFO Android app, Settings → Live voice has a Quick call on this phone section. Each of these starts a quick call:

• Quick settings tile — pull down the quick settings panel, tap edit (✎) and add Talk to UFO. Tap it to start a call, tap it again to end.
• App icon — press and hold the UFO icon and choose Talk to UFO.
• Side button — make UFO the phone's digital assistant: Default apps → Digital assistant app → Device assistance app → UFO (the Open assistant settings button takes you there). On a Galaxy, also set Settings → Advanced features → Side button → Press and hold → Digital assistant. Then press and hold the side button to talk. This replaces Google's assistant for that gesture.

With UFO as the assistant, the voice button on a headset or in the car can start a call too.

#Choose a voice and tune it

During a call, use the buttons on the call card (or the bar at the top):

Your voice and tune choices are kept on this device only.

The timer on the card shows how long the call has run and roughly what it has cost so far.

#Find a past call

Every call is saved word for word. It isn't posted as chat messages, so agents don't treat it as a new request.

• Channel calls — press Live calls in the channel header (the speech bubble button; it shows once the channel has had a call). Anyone who can see the channel can read its calls.
• Workspace calls — press Past calls (the clock button) on the call bar. Only you see your own workspace calls.

#If it does not work

#Related

• How do I…? — more quick answers
• Agents & your team
• Memory — what the voice can answer from
• Tasks & to-dos