Ask And Pay: Your UPI Will Work Like Alexa Soon

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has asked banks and payment aggregators to integrate voice command features into their applications by March 31. The Hello! UPI feature will likely enhance convenience and the overall user experience on platforms supporting UPI payments. Individuals can hope to use the feature by April 1. So how does 'Hello! UPI' work.

NPCI's October 27 guidelines include enabling voice-activated user onboarding, balance inquiries, financial transactions, and complaint resolution. Users can navigate UPI applications using voice commands, similar to telecom calls that rely on this feature.

How To Use 'Hello! UPI'

'Hello! UPI' can be used to initiate UPI transactions by voice. For any information or action on UPI, the user should use "Hello" as the wake-up word followed by the name of the UPI application. E.g., Hello! BHIM, make a Rs. 10 payment to Arvind (saved contact).

Initially, 'Hello! UPI' will be available in Hindi and English, with plans for expansion into regional languages soon. Users must manually enter their PIN when initiating transactions through the UPI app or Internet of Things (IoT) display devices.

The NPCI will facilitate voice interactions for on-call payments through 'Hello! UPI. For on-call payments, users must enter the UPI PIN manually on their mobile phone's keypad when making the call. Device-based enablement will be achieved through the SSCL/UPI Plug-in. All current and future experiences for 123Pay on-call shall be using 'Hello! UPI,' the release said.

NPCI also said that UPI will assist users with UPI onboarding, balance enquiry, providing alerts for suspicious transactions, offering smart prompts to enhance the user experience, user complaint redressal assistance with UPI Help, etc.

The introduction of voice-commanded UPI transactions promises to transform the way users interact with the UPI system, making it more accessible and user-friendly for people who are not tech-savvy.