A caller who learns halfway through a conversation that they were talking to software, or that the call was being recorded, remembers being handled. For a roofing company or a freight brokerage, that is a bad first impression.
This article covers what callers should hear in the first seconds of an AI-answered call, why recording rules differ by state, and where the FCC's 2024 ruling on AI voices applies. None of it is legal advice. Take your actual setup to your own counsel.
Say it at the start of the call
Put two facts in the greeting: the caller is talking to an automated assistant, and the call may be recorded. Say both before the first question, not after the caller has already given a name and an address.
One reason is courtesy. A homeowner with a leaking ceiling wants to know whether a person will act on this. The other is consent. Some states allow recording only when everyone on the call has agreed, and a spoken notice at the start is a common way to show that callers were told. Whether it satisfies a given state is a question for a lawyer.
A notice that comes mid-intake arrives after the recording started.
One-party and all-party consent states
Federal wiretap law sets a baseline. Under [18 U.S.C. 2511(2)(d)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2511), it is not unlawful to intercept a call where you are a party to it, or where one party has given prior consent, unless the purpose is to commit a crime or a tort. That is the "one-party consent" rule.
States can be stricter. Pennsylvania's statute lists an exception for a person who intercepts a communication "where all parties to the communication have given prior consent to such interception" ([18 Pa.C.S. 5704(4)](https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/18/00.057.004.000..HTM)). Florida's says it is lawful to intercept when "all of the parties to the communication have given prior consent" ([Fla. Stat. 934.03](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0900-0999/0934/Sections/0934.03.html)). Other states have their own text, and the wording differs.
Your callers do not stay in your state, and a brokerage talks to shippers and carriers nationwide. Which state's law governs a call that crosses a border is a hard question this article does not answer. One practical response is the same recording notice on every call, whatever the caller's area code. Whether that is enough is for counsel to say.
The FCC ruling covers outbound calls
In February 2024 the FCC adopted a declaratory ruling, [FCC 24-17](https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-24-17A1.pdf), adopted February 2 and released February 8. It confirms that the Telephone Consumer Protection Act's limits on an "artificial or prerecorded voice" cover current AI technologies that generate human voices. It calls them "artificial" voice messages "because a person is not speaking them."
The stated consequences are specific. A caller needs the called party's prior express consent before making a call with an AI-generated voice, unless there is an emergency purpose or an exemption. If the call introduces an advertisement or is telemarketing, the rules require prior express written consent. An artificial or prerecorded voice message must also state clearly, at the beginning, the identity of the business responsible for the call.
Now read the scope. The ruling says these requirements apply to "any AI technology that initiates any outbound telephone call using an artificial or prerecorded voice to consumers." It is about calls a business starts. A homeowner who dials your number and reaches an AI receptionist is an inbound call, and the text of this ruling does not address that situation.
The line is easier to cross than it looks. Say a web form arrives at 9 p.m. and your system calls the lead back in the same AI voice. That is an outbound call with an AI-generated voice. Whether the form counted as the consent the rule requires, and whether the call is telemarketing, are questions for your lawyer before you turn that on.
Write a short, honest greeting
The greeting has three jobs. Name your company, say an automated assistant is on the line, and say the call may be recorded.
A hypothetical roofing version:
"Thanks for calling [Company name]. You've reached our automated assistant, and this call may be recorded. I can take your details so someone from the office calls you back. What's going on with the roof?"
A hypothetical freight version:
"You've reached [Company name]. This is an automated assistant, and the call is recorded. Are you calling about a shipment, or are you a carrier?"
Rules for writing your own:
- Say "automated" or "AI" in plain speech. "Virtual assistant" lets some callers picture a person behind a screen. - Do not give the assistant a human first name and a backstory. - Do not promise what it cannot do. "I can take your details" is true. - Keep it under about fifteen seconds. If counsel wants more words, add them after the plain version.
Ask counsel too whether your state has its own rule on telling callers they are speaking with AI.
Test it before it goes live
Call your own line from a cell phone. Does the notice come before the first question? Ask the assistant "Am I talking to a real person?" and check that the answer is honest every time. Then decide where recordings are stored, who can listen, and how long you keep them.
If you want help writing the greeting and call flow for an AI receptionist, [book a call with Chosen AI Solutions](https://chosenai.co/book).
Sources
- Federal Communications Commission. Declaratory Ruling, FCC 24-17, CG Docket No. 23-362, adopted February 2, 2024, released February 8, 2024. [docs.fcc.gov](https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-24-17A1.pdf) - 18 U.S. Code 2511, interception and disclosure of wire, oral, or electronic communications. [law.cornell.edu](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2511) - 18 Pa.C.S. 5704, exceptions to prohibition of interception and disclosure of communications. [legis.state.pa.us](https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/18/00.057.004.000..HTM) - Florida Statutes 934.03, interception and disclosure of wire, oral, or electronic communications prohibited. [leg.state.fl.us](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0900-0999/0934/Sections/0934.03.html)