Turn-taking

aikyo implements a turn-taking system to enable multiple AI companions to engage in natural conversation flow. This system automatically determines who should speak and when.

How Turn Taking Works

Overall Process

1. The companion receiving a message generates a State object.
2. All companions publish their State objects to the states topic.
3. The TurnTakingManager collects all collected States.
4. Based on votes, it selects the next speaker.
5. The selected companion then executes its turn.

Generating State

Each companion determines its own state based on the entire conversation history.

State Structure

export const StateBodySchema = z.object({
  from: z.string(),
  messageId: z.string().describe(
    "The ID of the original message this state corresponds to"
  ),
  state: z
    .enum(["speak", "listen"])
    .describe("Whether you want to speak next or enter listening mode"),
  importance: z
    .number()
    .min(0)
    .max(10)
    .describe(
      "The priority of your next intended statement in the conversation context"
    ),
  selected: z
    .boolean()
    .describe(
      "Indicates whether the previous speaker has specifically called on you"
    ),
  closing: z
    .enum(["none", "pre-closing", "closing", "terminal"])
    .default("none")
    .describe(
      "Conversation closure stage: none/pre-closing/closure/terminal"
    ),
}).strict();
export type StateBody = z.infer<typeof StateBodySchema>;

Key Fields:

• state: Either speak (wanting to speak) or listen (entering listening mode)
• importance: A score between 0-10, where higher values indicate greater priority
• selected: Indicates whether you have been specifically called upon
• closing: Indication of conversation termination intent (see Conversation Closure for details)

Speaker Selection by TurnTakingManager

The TurnTakingManager collects all companions’ States to determine who should speak next.

State Collection

It waits until all participants have submitted their State objects, then proceeds once all votes are in.

Speaker Selection Logic

Priority Order:

1. Named companions (selected=true): Among these, the one with the highest importance
2. Companions requesting to speak (state=speak): Among these, the one with the highest importance
3. No eligible candidates: The turn ends without selection

Statement Execution

If the selected companion is yourself, you will execute your statement after a predetermined wait period. If closing=terminal, no statement will be delivered, and the conversation will conclude.