How I'd Approach DevRel for AssemblyAI

The Artificial Intelligence industry is growing rapidly, and AssemblyAI is at the forefront, offering advanced speech-to-text APIs that empower developers to build applications. It has three core products:

Its core capabilities include:

1. Speech-to-Text Transcription: This provides high-accuracy transcription with advanced diarization and language support.
2. Streaming Speech-to-Text: This delivers low-latency transcription with precise end-of-utterance controls for real-time applications.
3. Speech Understanding: This extracts deep insights from audio using powerful AI models for sentiment analysis, entity recognition, and more.

These capabilities make AssemblyAI a game-changer for developers building AI-powered applications.

Why AssemblyAI?

As a Developer Community Manager, I worked with a diverse group of community advocates who often faced challenges in writing reports, articles, and documentation. Many of them expressed, sometimes in passing, that they wished they had a tool to convert their spoken thoughts into written text effortlessly. They needed a solution that could help them focus on sharing knowledge rather than spending hours typing long documents. This experience made me realize the immense value of AI-driven speech-to-text solutions, and AssemblyAI is perfectly positioned to address this need. By leveraging AssemblyAI, developers can streamline documentation, create high-quality content, and enhance productivity with ease.

The integration of AI-driven speech recognition in applications unlocks new possibilities and transforms workflows across various industries, including:

Content Moderation: AI-powered speech analysis can help detect and filter inappropriate or harmful audio content in real time.

Audio Search & Indexing: Transcribing and indexing spoken content makes podcasts, interviews, and meetings more searchable and accessible.

Voice Authentication & Security: AI-driven voice recognition can enhance security by enabling accurate speaker verification in applications.

Automated Meeting Notes & Summaries: Speech-to-text technology can generate precise transcripts and actionable summaries for meetings, improving collaboration and efficiency.

AssemblyAI’s ability to process voice data with high accuracy and efficiency makes it an essential tool for AI-driven applications. Its advanced speech recognition capabilities empower developers to build innovative solutions that enhance productivity, accessibility, and user experiences across various industries.

How I’d Approach Developer Advocacy for AssemblyAI

Developer advocacy plays a critical role in driving adoption, fostering community engagement, and ensuring developers have the resources and inspiration to build with AssemblyAI’s technology. My approach would focus on social engagement, content creation, community building, and technical education.

1. Owning Developer-Focused Social and Community Channels

• I’d expand AssemblyAI’s presence on Twitter, Discord, Reddit, and LinkedIn by consistently sharing updates, engaging in AI discussions, and highlighting developer success stories. It is important for developers to see what’s possible - that is a major source of motivation.
• I would showcase developer projects from our community by amplifying the innovative applications built using AssemblyAI’s API through blog posts, social media, and case studies.
• Staying on top of AI trends. I would ensure that AssemblyAI is part of key AI conversations by sharing insights and commentary on industry developments.

2. Creating Engaging Technical Content

• Developing a content plan and calendar is a top priority for me, as it allows me to strategically brainstorm and align content ideas with specific platforms and goals, ensuring a smooth and efficient content creation process.
• Publish tutorials and code samples: As a developer advocate, I would develop blog posts, guides, and GitHub repositories to help developers integrate AssemblyAI seamlessly. Here is an article I wrote some time ago to help Golang Developers understand the proper use of format specifiers in their code.
• Produce video content and live demos: Being someone who is very comfortable in front of the camera, I would create engaging technical walkthroughs, API demos, and YouTube videos showcasing real-world use cases that developers can easily follow.
• Write insightful AI-focused content: I would contribute articles on AI trends, best practices, and how AssemblyAI can solve real-world challenges, redirecting the attention of developers to its capabilities.

3. Fostering Developer Community and Engagement

• As a Developer Community Manager, I have had the opportunity to witness first-hand how united and motivated developers become when they are in a space that motivates them to learn and grow. As a Developer Advocate, I would host hackathons and AI challenges that encourage developers to experiment with AssemblyAI’s API and showcase their projects.
• I would actively answer questions, provide support, and facilitate discussions with developers through Discord, Twitter spaces, and meetups.
• Community thrives on partnerships, which is why, as a Developer Advocate, I would partner with other developer-focused platforms and communities to increase awareness.

4. Representing AssemblyAI at Industry Events

• For the past six years, I have taken various stages to share knowledge and host workshops as my career evolved. As a Developer Advocate, I would actively apply to speak at conferences and meetups, where I can share insights on Speech AI and showcase AssemblyAI’s capabilities.
• I would attend key gatherings to network with developers and promote AssemblyAI.
• I would collaborate with AI and cloud platforms on joint initiatives to expand our reach and drive deeper engagement with their developer communities.

5. Gathering Developer Feedback and Advocating Internally

• I would act and be the voice of the developer. Gathering insights from the community to inform product improvements and feature developments for AssemblyAI.
• Collaboration with product and engineering teams would also be the top priority to ensure our developer needs are integrated into AssemblyAI’s roadmap.
• I would run developer surveys and feedback loops to help me continuously assess pain points and work on solutions to improve the developer experience.

First 90 Days Plan for Developer Advocacy Execution

Phase 1: Establishing Presence & Community Engagement (Days 1-30)

• Strengthen AssemblyAI’s engagement on Twitter, Discord, and Reddit by creating a content calendar to capture major highlights that we want to communicate to the developer ecosystem.
• Publish an introductory blog post highlighting key use cases and developer success stories.
• Conduct outreach to developers using AssemblyAI’s API to gather testimonials and showcase projects.
• Identify top AI and developer influencers for potential collaborations.

Phase 2: Content & Education (Days 31-60)

• Release API integration guides and tutorials tailored to various industries.
• Launch the first AI-focused hackathon with developer incentives.
• Create video walkthroughs and live coding sessions for popular use cases.
• Develop an open-source sample application demonstrating Speech AI’s potential.

Phase 3: Expansion & Advocacy (Days 61-90)

• Secure partnerships with developer communities and AI-focused educational platforms.
• Organize and participate in AI and developer conferences to represent AssemblyAI.
• Scale developer evangelism efforts by collaborating with industry influencers.
• Launch a developer feedback initiative to continuously improve the developer experience.

Conclusion

Developer advocacy is a crucial component of AssemblyAI’s growth strategy, and by combining social engagement, content creation, community building, and direct developer support, AssemblyAI can solidify its position as the go-to Speech AI platform. With a strong focus on education, engagement, and advocacy, AssemblyAI can continue to inspire developers and accelerate the adoption of AI-powered speech applications.