Deepgram tool lets AI assistants answer phone calls
New open-source software allows OpenClaw bots to talk on the phone using speech tech built by Deepgram
Deepgram has released a free tool that allows artificial intelligence bots to take phone calls, making it easier for developers to build voice-based AI assistants that sound natural and respond quickly.
The tool, called Deepclaw, connects with OpenClaw, an open-source assistant platform.
Once installed, it lets these bots speak and listen through Deepgram’s Voice Agent technology, which combines real-time speech recognition, speech generation and smart conversation handling in one system.
Unlike older systems that wait for long pauses before replying, Deepgram’s Voice Agent can tell when someone has finished speaking by understanding how their voice changes at the end of a sentence. This makes conversations with bots feel faster and more human, the company said.
The setup is designed to be simple. Developers can copy a file to a folder, tell OpenClaw they want to make phone calls, link their Deepgram account and a Twilio phone number, then call that number to start speaking to the bot.
The code is open source and runs on about 400 lines of Python, according to Deepgram. The full project is available at github.com/deepgram/deepclaw.
Deepgram also compared its performance and pricing with other tools.
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It claimed its text-to-speech responds in about 113 milliseconds, significantly faster than a similar service from ElevenLabs. It also said its prices are lower and that users can run the software on their own machines, unlike other services that are only available online.
The company said it is continuing to improve performance and is working on ways to make the setup process even faster.The Recap
- Deepgram released deepclaw to add phone calls to OpenClaw.
- Voice Agent combines Flux, Aura-2, and intelligent turn-taking.
- OpenClaw skill promised as coming soon by the company.
