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Free Conversation Mode

Free conversation is the chat mode where, after a wake-up, the device keeps listening for multi-round, hands-free dialogue. You wake it once and then talk back and forth without a button and without repeating the wake word for each turn.

It is one of the four voice chat modes; register it with ai_mode_free_register().

When to use it​

Use free mode for natural, conversational interaction where the user takes several turns in a row:

  • Multi-round chat — after waking, the device keeps listening for follow-up turns, so a conversation flows without re-triggering each time.
  • Fully hands-free — no button presses during the conversation; the user just keeps speaking.
  • Conversational products — best for assistants and companions designed for back-and-forth dialogue rather than single commands.

The trade-off is that the device listens continuously during the conversation, so it suits quieter, single-user settings better than noisy or shared rooms. For one turn at a time, use wake-word mode; for full manual control, use hold-to-talk.

How it behaves​

A turn follows the shared mode lifecycle. After wake-up the device enters LISTEN; each turn advances through UPLOAD, THINK, and SPEAK, and then returns to LISTEN for the next round rather than going idle — keeping the conversation open.

note

Free mode keeps listening between turns, so the device captures audio continuously during a conversation. It needs the audio component (ENABLE_COMP_AI_AUDIO) for voice-activity detection.

Enable it​

Register the mode at startup, then make it the active mode with ai_mode_init:

ai_mode_free_register();
ai_mode_init(AI_CHAT_MODE_FREE);   // AI_CHAT_MODE_HOLD | ONE_SHOT | WAKEUP | FREE

See Voice Chat Modes for the full startup sequence — registering several modes, running the task loop, and switching between them at runtime.

See also​