A study by the University of Missouri-Kansas City and the University of Arizona revealed that people are speaking fewer and fewer words out loud. Between 2005 and 2019, the daily average dropped from 16,632 to 11,900 words, a reduction of 28%. The researchers, who analyzed audio from over 2,000 participants, point to the rise of apps, text messages, and online life as the main causes. The pandemic likely accelerated this trend.
Silence as the new standard in interface development 🎧
This shift forces a rethink of digital product design. User interfaces, once designed to complement conversation, now replace it. Developers prioritize app-based ordering systems, chatbots, and touch menus that eliminate the need to speak. Efficiency is measured in clicks, not words. However, this optimization comes at a cost: human interaction is reduced to silent transactions, and the voice, a basic communication tool, is relegated to voice commands for digital assistants.
The day we preferred typing to ordering a coffee with our mouths ☕
If in 2005 you let out 16,632 words a day, today you save almost 5,000. That's like 20 pages of a book you don't tell anyone. But don't worry: you surely make up for that silence with 47 WhatsApp messages, three emails, and an eggplant emoji. After all, why speak if you can write and be misunderstood in delayed time? The good news is that, at this rate, by 2035 we will communicate only with glances and the sound of fingers on the keyboard.