Voice Prompting
Voice prompting is the practice of writing prompts for realtime voice and audio AI interfaces — speech-to-speech systems, voice agents, and realtime APIs — where the output will be spoken aloud rather than read. It differs from text prompting in three key ways: turn-taking must be short and easily parseable; interruptions from the user must be handled gracefully; and output format must be speakable, with no markdown, no long bullet lists, and no ASCII tables. System prompts for voice agents emphasize tone, pacing, and verbal conventions (confirmations, filler phrasing, how to handle being cut off) more than written structure.
Example
A support voice agent's system prompt specifies: "Keep each turn under 2 sentences. If the caller interrupts, stop talking mid-sentence and listen. Never list more than 3 options aloud — if there are more, offer to email them. Confirm every account change by repeating the key detail back before acting." The same instructions in a text chatbot would be unusual; for voice they are the minimum viable contract.
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