AI-assisted data collection

CensusIO can help you get records into a form faster, so your hands and eyes stay on the work. Today, AI-assisted data collection means Tally, a hands-free way to fill the data-entry form by voice. Tally is not a general assistant: it does one job, entering a record. It reads each question out loud, you answer by voice or by typing, it reads the value back, and it saves the value only after you confirm. Tally proposes; you decide. A microphone is never required: you can type every answer.

Start Tally

From a survey type, choose Enter data. If your plan includes Tally, a small card sits in the bottom-right corner of the form. Click Start Tally. The first time you speak, your browser asks to use the microphone. Allow it to answer by voice, or skip it and type.

Answer a field

Tally reads the current question, for example “Length?”.
Answer it. Hold the microphone button, speak, and release when you are done. Or type in the box and press Send.
Tally reads the value back, for example “247, correct?”.
Say yes (or next), or click Yes, to save it and move to the next field. To fix a value in one step, say no, then the correct value, for example “no, 55”.

Voice commands

You can say any of these at any time:

Say	What it does
next, back	move between fields
repeat	hear the current question again
skip	leave the field blank and move on
undo	clear the value you just entered
cancel	stop the assistant

Two shortcuts

On a date field, say today (or now) to fill today’s date.
On a location field, say use my location to capture your device’s GPS. Your browser asks for permission the first time.

Say a whole sentence

On the Professional plan and above, with a network connection, you can describe several fields in one breath, for example “three rainbow trout, biggest was 247 millimeters, female”. Tally reads the sentence, fills the fields it recognizes, and reads each proposed value back for you to confirm one at a time.

Choosing from a list

For a field with set options (a species, a gear type), Tally matches what you said to the closest option. If two are close, it offers a short A/B/C list: say the letter or the option name, or pick it on screen. If it cannot make out your answer, it says so and asks you to try again or type it. It never guesses a value.

Scan with the camera

Some fields can be filled by pointing your camera at the thing itself instead of typing. When a field’s designer has given it a capture tool, a button appears while you are on that field:

Barcode or tag: scan the code, and Tally reads it back for you to confirm.
Measure: lay a card (or a printed marker) beside the item, take a photo, and tap the reference and the item’s two ends; Tally proposes the length for you to confirm. The in-photo reference makes the result accurate at any distance. See Measuring with the camera.
Count: scan tagged items so each tag counts once, or photograph specimens laid out on a tray and correct the marks; Tally proposes the number for you to confirm. See Counting with the camera.

Which fields offer a tool, and which one, is set per field in the builder (see Field settings). More camera tools are on the way.

Tally on desktop and mobile

Tally is not only on the web. It walks the same fields, with the same confirm-before-save gate, on the other apps too:

The desktop app. On the entry form, Tally reads each question aloud and you answer by typing, then confirm. The desktop app reads answers back but does not take live voice input. The camera tools work with a built-in or connected camera.
The mobile app. On a new record, tap Fill by voice to walk the form with Tally: it reads each question, you answer by voice (where your phone supports it) or by typing, and you confirm each value. You can scan a barcode or tag, or count tagged items, straight into a field.

Typing, and quiet or noisy places

A text box is always there, next to the microphone. Anyone who cannot or prefers not to speak can type every answer, and everything Tally says is also shown on screen. In a loud place, typing the values that matter most (a number, a species) is often faster and surer than repeating them.

Where voice works

Web: voice input works in Chrome, Edge, and Safari. In Firefox, and in an app installed to your phone’s home screen, Tally uses typing instead.
Mobile app: voice input works where your phone provides speech recognition; otherwise you type. The spoken read-back always works.
Desktop app: Tally reads each question aloud and you type your answers; live voice input is not available there.

On the web and the phone, speaking may send your audio to your device or browser maker’s speech service. If your organization restricts its data to its own region, Tally keeps the microphone off and you type instead; the spoken read-back still works, because it stays on your device.

What you need

The Professional plan or above.
A microphone, to answer by voice. This is optional; you can always type.
A network connection for full-sentence phrasing. The step-by-step voice works offline.