1. Acknowledge before the main answer
A brief “mm” or “hmm” can let the user hear that the character has responded before the main answer arrives. Use a closed-mouth sound rather than a short phrase such as “Sure” or “Wow.” Keep content that needs precise lip movement in the main reply. Set the opening, then enable its fast playback: the character instructions put the acknowledgement on its own first line, andpipeline_config.tag_audio_enabled lets an eligible short acknowledgement play before the main answer. The switch does not generate the opening text.
2. Update Chat Style and Hard Rules
Add word choice and variation to Chat Style. Add the first-line format, real newline, and tool-only exception to Hard Rules. Merge the following into the existingavatars[].instructions, retaining the character’s identity and normal response rules. See Write spoken instructions for the complete structure.
3. Enable the fast opening audio
pipeline_config into the Create Session request. tag_audio_enabled belongs inside that object and must be a boolean. It defaults to false. Preserve your other settings and test in a new Session.
4. Check the text, then listen
The generated reply should contain a real line break:\n encodes a newline. After parsing, it must be a line break, not the literal characters backslash and n. In a plain text editor, enter an ordinary newline.
The fallback opening limits are two Han characters and ten English letters; platform configuration may change these limits. The “嗯” and “hmm” examples on this page fit those fallback limits. Mixed text must satisfy both limits. Punctuation does not count. Only the first complete speech segment is considered. The service does not extract “hmm” from a longer opening sentence. Once the text is correct, listen for a clear acknowledgement and a smooth transition into the answer.
5. Try it with Playground
Use Avatar Playground to prepare the character and voice and start a conversation. Merge the prompt into Avatar Instructions and enablepipeline_config.tag_audio_enabled in the project’s Create Session request. End the current experience, then start again to test.
Try a practical question, a correction, an emotional remark, and a language change. Check the first line, variation from the previous spoken reply, and the character of the answer. If your application has a silent tool-only turn, test that it remains silent.