Voice Notes Are Having A Moment. It's Different This Time.
Audiences are showing signs of wanting a break from the matrix. Perhaps it’s the impending threat of what an AI-driven world will feel like or the historically high rates of screen time and content consumption. One of the biggest trends this Summer is not on TikTok - it’s what the travel industry is calling a quiet vacation: traveling somewhere to rest and restore, cut off from other people, secluded, and away from tourism. A different symptom of the same underlying issue, finding balance within the overwhelming nature of modern digital life, is surfacing elsewhere: voice and voice notes are having a moment.
Yes, we’ve all had that one friend that sends them – this recent spike is different. Relaunched app Airchat, is making waves in Silicon Valley and charting on the app store. It’s a new platform centered entirely around voice. As described by one reviewer, “The app combines the standard newsfeed format with audio notes...users speak into the app, they don't have the option to type posts, and as their followers scroll through their feeds, they hear the voice in addition to seeing the AI-generated transcript.” While Clubhouse connected strangers in public rooms, Airchat aspires to be a more intimate messaging tool. Airchat’s CEO recently shared that “most of the people using Airchat today are very introverted and shy.”
While voice notes may have once been a substitute for phone calls, they are now increasingly proving their value against text messages. Snap says voice note usage has gone up 50% during the past two years and dating app Hinge reports that sending a voice note in a conversation shows a 48% increase in likelihood of leading to a date. A recent study found that 61% of 18-76 year olds agree that it’s easier to convey tone through voice notes than written texts. If it’s true that we are living through a “loneliness epidemic” stemming from what experts refer to as “lower quality of connections”, perhaps the integration of human voice in digital media may offer culture some form of healing. As Airchat’s app store tagline puts it, “Never feel alone again. Always someone to talk to.”