Block unveils Dessa, AI speech model trained on human speech
block's new ai model dessa was trained entirely on human speech to catch emotions text-based models miss. this could change voice ai interactions.
block, the company behind square and cash app, has unveiled an ai speech model called dessa. dessa was trained entirely on human speech, with no text data, and processes speech directly as audio. this allows it to pick up on emotions, sarcasm, laughter, and pauses in real time. the model supports full-duplex communication and runs locally on a macbook pro m4 max. block built dessa out of curiosity, a desire for better human-ai communication, and safety concerns.