Arc vs SoundHound

Arc is a voice AI platform from Sparkpoint Inc. for restaurant operators and local businesses running drive-thrus. Its voice ordering agent manages the customer’s full order conversation and can suggest upsells. Automated Order Punching listens to crew orders and enters them into the POS at a drive-thru or counter. Phone ordering can connect with a restaurant call center. Arc Observe supplies real-time and aggregated order insights, including throughput analytics. Listed POS integrations include NCR, Xenial, Toast, Par/Brink, Oracle Micros, and other major drive-thru systems. Arc says menu changes, limited-time offers, unavailable items, and price updates can reach the system within minutes without engineering work. It works with existing POS systems and base stations, without replacement hardware. Calls needing assistance can be handed to staff, with fallbacks logged for review. Kickoff to pilot is eight weeks, with no cost until deployment. Pricing is available by request.

SoundHound is a mobile app for identifying music nearby and finding songs with voice control. Users can also sing or hum a tune to identify it. Saying “Hey SoundHound…” can navigate the app, start music discovery, and control playback hands-free. LiveLyrics displays moving lyrics in real time. The app connects Apple Music or Spotify accounts and includes a built-in YouTube player. Discoveries can sync across devices and be shared through Facebook, Twitter, messaging services, or email. Its Apple Watch app identifies music and displays LiveLyrics; a cellular-enabled watch can be used without an iPhone connection. SoundHound is available on Android and iOS, and keeps an identification history, but does not identify music offline. The free app includes advertising. SoundHound∞ is an ad-free upgrade listed at $6.99 as a one-time purchase, with no monthly fees. Personalized playlists through Apple Music or Spotify require a SoundHound account and a music subscription; voice playback of Spotify playlists also requires a Spotify account and registration. The company identifies itself as SoundHound AI Inc., headquartered in Santa Clara, California.