Interruption Response by an Artificial Intelligence Character

A method for use by a system including a hardware processor and a system memory, the system memory storing a software code and a machine learning (ML) model trained to detect an interruption to a conversation by a participant in the conversation, the method comprising:

• detecting, by the software code executed by the hardware processor, during a conversational turn by a first artificial intelligence (AI) character in an interaction with at least one of a human or a second AI character, sound produced by the at least one of the human or the second AI character;
• classifying, by the software code executed by the hardware processor and using the ML model, the sound as an interruption to the interaction;
• identifying, by the software code executed by the hardware processor and using an interruption response strategy identification engine, a response strategy for continuing the interaction based on one or more of:
• (a) context of the interaction with the at least one of the human speaker or the second AI character,
• (b) a predicted importance of the conversational turn, or
• (c) a predicted importance of the interruption;
• and
• executing the response strategy by controlling playback of previously generated speech output of the first AI character based on a current playback position when the interruption is detected, wherein controlling playback comprises resuming, modifying, or terminating the previously generated speech output.

A system comprising:

• a hardware processor;
• a system memory storing a software code and a machine learning (ML) model trained to detect an interruption to a conversation by a participant in the conversation;
• and
• the hardware processor configured to execute the software code to:
• detect during a conversational turn by a first artificial intelligence (AI) character in an interaction with at least one of a human or a second AI character, sound produced by the at least one of the human or the second AI character;
• classify, using the ML model, the sound as an interruption to the interaction;
• identify, using an interruption response strategy identification engine, a response strategy for continuing the interaction based on one or more of:
• (a) context of the interaction with the at least one of the human speaker or the second AI character,
• (b) a predicted importance of the conversational turn, or
• (c) a predicted importance of the interruption;
• and
• wherein the response strategy is executed by controlling playback of previously generated speech output of the first AI character based on a current playback position when the interruption is detected, wherein controlling playback comprises resuming, modifying, or terminating the previously generated speech output.