From typing to talking: Designing Nova's voice experience

Nova launched in 2023 as a text-based AI mental health coach. From day one, clients were asking for voice - it's a more natural way to talk through difficult moments, and people speak 3x faster than they type. But in mental health, voice presents extra risk. We needed to be cautious about safety, manage client concerns, and make sure we weren't just matching what people expected from common AI tools.