A growing use of artificial intelligence to alter the accents of call centre workers in real time is raising concerns among union leaders and academics, who warn the technology could mislead customers and affect Canadian jobs.
The issue is drawing scrutiny in Canada after labour representatives said at least one major domestic telecommunications company is using the technology.
“We’re aware of at least one of the three big telco companies using it to mask the accents of offshore agents, altering how customers perceive who they’re talking to,” said Roch Leblanc, telecommunications director for Unifor, in remarks to a parliamentary committee on April 30. The “big three” are Rogers, Bell and Telus.
Leblanc did not name the company, but Telus Digital previously posted on its website announcing a partnership with an “AI-powered speech enhancement” company to “soften accents.”
Speech enhancement AI leverages cutting-edge speech-to-speech models to transform audio in real time. These models directly modify the acoustic features of speech, preserving the speaker’s voice while improving clarity and reducing accent-related friction,” it reads.
AI tools demonstrated online show how a speaker’s accent can be instantly modified, allowing non-native English speakers to sound more like anglophones.
The Philippines and India are major global hubs for call centres serving North American companies, which are increasingly outsourcing such customer service operations to reduce costs.
As a growing number of firms are turning to AI to make workers’ speech easier for customers to understand, the Canadian Telecommunications Workers Alliance is flagging the practice at the federal level.
“Canadians should know when AI is being used,” said Leblanc.
Renee Sieber, an associate professor at McGill University, said the technology may appear harmless but could have broader consequences.
“Here’s an application that a company may say is benign, but actually could be stealing Canadian jobs,” she said.
The practice appears to be expanding globally.
Teleperformance SE, the world’s largest call centre operator, is reportedly rolling out AI technology to eliminate the accents of Indian workers.
Supporters of the technology however say the tools can improve communication. “It is very hard sometimes when you’re on the line with someone and you can’t understand them and you want something done,” said Maura Grossman, a research professor at the University of Waterloo.
But critics argue the technology could increase outsourcing and reduce acceptance of different accents.
“You have to ask yourself, would we be doing this if it was for an accent from Australia or the U.K.?” Grossman questioned.
The federal government has yet to release its long-awaited national AI strategy, but has said it will address issues of transparency.
It remains unclear whether that would include requiring companies to disclose whether a voice has been altered or generated by AI.
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