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Azure AI Voicelive Dotnet

MicrosoftOfficialCreated by Microsoft

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  • Software development
  • MIT
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From the author

Azure AI Voice Live SDK for .NET. Build real-time voice AI applications with bidirectional WebSocket communication. Use for voice assistants, conversational AI, real-time speech-to-speech, and voice-enabled chatbots. Triggers: "voice live", "real-time voice", "VoiceLiveClient", "VoiceLiveSession", "voice assistant .NET", "bidirectional audio", "speech-to-speech".
— the description by Microsoft

AutoGineer summary

Written by AutoGineer from the skill’s own files, not by the author

The Azure.AI.VoiceLive SDK for .NET provides the necessary components to integrate real-time voice capabilities into .NET applications. It facilitates bidirectional WebSocket communication with Azure AI models, enabling the development of voice assistants, conversational AI, and speech-to-speech interfaces. The SDK includes support for session configuration, event handling, function calling, and voice activity detection.

What it does

  • Establishes bidirectional WebSocket connections for real-time voice interaction.
  • Supports configuration of session parameters including voice selection and modalities.
  • Provides event-driven processing for audio and text updates.
  • Enables function calling to integrate external services with voice responses.
  • Includes built-in support for voice activity detection (VAD).
  • Offers multiple authentication methods including Microsoft Entra and API keys.

When to use it

  • When building voice-enabled chatbots or conversational AI agents in .NET.
  • When implementing real-time speech-to-speech functionality.
  • When integrating Azure AI voice models into existing .NET applications.
  • When requiring bidirectional audio streaming for interactive voice assistants.

Advantages

  • Native .NET integration for Azure AI voice services.
  • Structured client hierarchy for managing sessions and events.
  • Flexible configuration for audio formats and turn detection.
  • Supports standard Azure authentication patterns.

Usage examples

“How do I start a voice session in .NET using Azure.AI.VoiceLive?”
The user receives a code example demonstrating the initialization of a VoiceLiveClient, session configuration with VoiceLiveSessionOptions, and the use of StartSessionAsync.
“How can I handle incoming audio and text from the VoiceLive session?”
The user is shown how to iterate through GetUpdatesAsync and use a switch statement to process SessionUpdateResponseAudioDelta and SessionUpdateResponseTextDelta events.
“How do I add a function call to my voice assistant?”
The user receives guidance on defining a VoiceLiveFunctionDefinition, adding it to session options, and handling the resulting function call arguments within the event loop.

Install

  1. Download the skill as a ZIP:

    https://autogineer.com/agent-skills/microsoft/azure-ai-voicelive-dotnet/download
  2. Unzip it into the cross-client skills folder of your project:

    mkdir -p .agents/skills && unzip azure-ai-voicelive-dotnet.zip -d .agents/skills

Documentation by Microsoft

Azure.AI.VoiceLive (.NET)

Real-time voice AI SDK for building bidirectional voice assistants with Azure AI.

Installation

dotnet add package Azure.AI.VoiceLive
dotnet add package Azure.Identity
dotnet add package NAudio                    # For audio capture/playback

Current Versions: Stable v1.0.0, Preview v1.1.0-beta.1

Environment Variables

AZURE_VOICELIVE_ENDPOINT=https://<resource>.services.ai.azure.com/  # Required: Voice Live endpoint
AZURE_VOICELIVE_MODEL=gpt-4o-realtime-preview  # Required: model deployment name
AZURE_VOICELIVE_VOICE=en-US-AvaNeural  # Optional: Voice Live voice name
AZURE_VOICELIVE_API_KEY=<your-api-key>  # Only required for AzureKeyCredential auth
AZURE_TOKEN_CREDENTIALS=prod  # Required only if DefaultAzureCredential is used in production

Authentication

Microsoft Entra Token Credential
using Azure.Identity;
using Azure.AI.VoiceLive;

Uri endpoint = new Uri("https://your-resource.cognitiveservices.azure.com");
// Local dev: DefaultAzureCredential. Production: set AZURE_TOKEN_CREDENTIALS=prod or AZURE_TOKEN_CREDENTIALS=<specific_credential>
var credential = new DefaultAzureCredential(
    DefaultAzureCredential.DefaultEnvironmentVariableName
);
// Or use a specific credential directly in production:
// See https://learn.microsoft.com/dotnet/api/overview/azure/identity-readme?view=azure-dotnet#credential-classes
// var credential = new ManagedIdentityCredential();
VoiceLiveClient client = new VoiceLiveClient(endpoint, credential);

Required Role: Cognitive Services User (assign in Azure Portal → Access control)

API Key
Uri endpoint = new Uri("https://your-resource.cognitiveservices.azure.com");
AzureKeyCredential credential = new AzureKeyCredential("your-api-key");
VoiceLiveClient client = new VoiceLiveClient(endpoint, credential);

Client Hierarchy

VoiceLiveClient
└── VoiceLiveSession (WebSocket connection)
    ├── ConfigureSessionAsync()
    ├── GetUpdatesAsync() → SessionUpdate events
    ├── AddItemAsync() → UserMessageItem, FunctionCallOutputItem
    ├── SendAudioAsync()
    └── StartResponseAsync()

Core Workflow

1. Start Session and Configure
using Azure.Identity;
using Azure.AI.VoiceLive;

var endpoint = new Uri(Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("AZURE_VOICELIVE_ENDPOINT"));
var client = new VoiceLiveClient(endpoint, new DefaultAzureCredential());

var model = "gpt-4o-mini-realtime-preview";

// Start session
using VoiceLiveSession session = await client.StartSessionAsync(model);

// Configure session
VoiceLiveSessionOptions sessionOptions = new()
{
    Model = model,
    Instructions = "You are a helpful AI assistant. Respond naturally.",
    Voice = new AzureStandardVoice("en-US-AvaNeural"),
    TurnDetection = new AzureSemanticVadTurnDetection()
    {
        Threshold = 0.5f,
        PrefixPadding = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(300),
        SilenceDuration = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(500)
    },
    InputAudioFormat = InputAudioFormat.Pcm16,
    OutputAudioFormat = OutputAudioFormat.Pcm16
};

// Set modalities (both text and audio for voice assistants)
sessionOptions.Modalities.Clear();
sessionOptions.Modalities.Add(InteractionModality.Text);
sessionOptions.Modalities.Add(InteractionModality.Audio);

await session.ConfigureSessionAsync(sessionOptions);
2. Process Events
await foreach (SessionUpdate serverEvent in session.GetUpdatesAsync())
{
    switch (serverEvent)
    {
        case SessionUpdateResponseAudioDelta audioDelta:
            byte[] audioData = audioDelta.Delta.ToArray();
            // Play audio via NAudio or other audio library
            break;
            
        case SessionUpdateResponseTextDelta textDelta:
            Console.Write(textDelta.Delta);
            break;
            
        case SessionUpdateResponseFunctionCallArgumentsDone functionCall:
            // Handle function call (see Function Calling section)
            break;
            
        case SessionUpdateError error:
            Console.WriteLine($"Error: {error.Error.Message}");
            break;
            
        case SessionUpdateResponseDone:
            Console.WriteLine("\n--- Response complete ---");
            break;
    }
}
3. Send User Message
await session.AddItemAsync(new UserMessageItem("Hello, can you help me?"));
await session.StartResponseAsync();
4. Function Calling
// Define function
var weatherFunction = new VoiceLiveFunctionDefinition("get_current_weather")
{
    Description = "Get the current weather for a given location",
    Parameters = BinaryData.FromString("""
        {
            "type": "object",
            "properties": {
                "location": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "description": "The city and state or country"
                }
            },
            "required": ["location"]
        }
        """)
};

// Add to session options
sessionOptions.Tools.Add(weatherFunction);

// Handle function call in event loop
if (serverEvent is SessionUpdateResponseFunctionCallArgumentsDone functionCall)
{
    if (functionCall.Name == "get_current_weather")
    {
        var parameters = JsonSerializer.Deserialize<Dictionary<string, string>>(functionCall.Arguments);
        string location = parameters?["location"] ?? "";
        
        // Call external service
        string weatherInfo = $"The weather in {location} is sunny, 75°F.";
        
        // Send response
        await session.AddItemAsync(new FunctionCallOutputItem(functionCall.CallId, weatherInfo));
        await session.StartResponseAsync();
    }
}

Voice Options

Voice TypeClassExample
Azure StandardAzureStandardVoice"en-US-AvaNeural"
Azure HDAzureStandardVoice"en-US-Ava:DragonHDLatestNeural"
Azure CustomAzureCustomVoiceCustom voice with endpoint ID

Supported Models

ModelDescription
gpt-4o-realtime-previewGPT-4o with real-time audio
gpt-4o-mini-realtime-previewLightweight, fast interactions
phi4-mm-realtimeCost-effective multimodal

Key Types Reference

TypePurpose
VoiceLiveClientMain client for creating sessions
VoiceLiveSessionActive WebSocket session
VoiceLiveSessionOptionsSession configuration
AzureStandardVoiceStandard Azure voice provider
AzureSemanticVadTurnDetectionVoice activity detection
VoiceLiveFunctionDefinitionFunction tool definition
UserMessageItemUser text message
FunctionCallOutputItemFunction call response
SessionUpdateResponseAudioDeltaAudio chunk event
SessionUpdateResponseTextDeltaText chunk event

Best Practices

  1. Always set both modalities — Include Text and Audio for voice assistants

  2. Use AzureSemanticVadTurnDetection — Provides natural conversation flow

  3. Configure appropriate silence duration — 500ms typical to avoid premature cutoffs

  4. Use using statement — Ensures proper session disposal

  5. Handle all event types — Check for errors, audio, text, and function calls

  6. Use DefaultAzureCredential — Never hardcode API keys

Error Handling

if (serverEvent is SessionUpdateError error)
{
    if (error.Error.Message.Contains("Cancellation failed: no active response"))
    {
        // Benign error, can ignore
    }
    else
    {
        Console.WriteLine($"Error: {error.Error.Message}");
    }
}

Audio Configuration

  • Input Format: InputAudioFormat.Pcm16 (16-bit PCM)

  • Output Format: OutputAudioFormat.Pcm16

  • Sample Rate: 24kHz recommended

  • Channels: Mono

SDKPurposeInstall
Azure.AI.VoiceLiveReal-time voice (this SDK)dotnet add package Azure.AI.VoiceLive
Microsoft.CognitiveServices.SpeechSpeech-to-text, text-to-speechdotnet add package Microsoft.CognitiveServices.Speech
NAudioAudio capture/playbackdotnet add package NAudio

Files

Requirements and compatibility

Works with: Claude Code, Claude apps, OpenAI Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, Kiro, OpenCode, Goose, Amp, Roo Code, JetBrains Junie, Factory Droid, Devin (ex-Windsurf), Mistral Vibe, OpenHands, Letta

“Works with” means the tool reads the open Agent Skills format; a skill written for one tool may use features others lack.

Needs: Needs an API key

Security

No issues found by our static scan· No issues found

A static scan is not a guarantee. Skills are third-party content: review a skill before you let an agent use it.

Attribution and licence

Created by
Microsoft
Publisher
Microsoft (Official)
Source
microsoft/skills · .github/plugins/azure-sdk-dotnet/skills/azure-ai-voicelive-dotnet · commit 0696600
Licence
MIT License (redistribution allowed)
  • LICENSE (added by AutoGineer from LICENSE)
  • ATTRIBUTION.md (written by AutoGineer)
Synced

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Download ZIP

The ZIP holds the skill’s files, its licence files and an ATTRIBUTION.md. Download azure-ai-voicelive-dotnet.zip