While there’s pretty much nothing I dislike about a
Dorito, the sound of constant crunching can get annoying when I’m trying to chat on the phone or sneak snacks during a Zoom call at work.
Fortunately, the brand has dreamt up a solution. Doritos recently created groundbreaking crunch-cancellation software, appropriately dubbed Doritos Silent, that cancels out chewing noises. And while it’s sounds like a dream even for non-gamers like myself, it was created for video game fans so they can snack without distracting other players.
“The connection between Doritos fans and the gaming community is undeniable,” said Global Marketing Head at PepsiCo Fernando Kahane. “Both boldly and unapologetically embrace their individual flavors. ‘Doritos Silent’ recognizes this bond and demonstrates the brand’s continued commitment to innovation and elevating the experience for gamers who choose Doritos.”
The free Doritos Silent app, which launched earlier this week, “works on anything that accepts a microphone,” lead developer at Brooklyn-based Smooth Technology Dylan Fashbaugh said, according to The Washington Post. After recording nearly 500 people crunching on the chip, Doritos and Smooth Technology were able to simulate 5,000 crunch sounds.
“Then, we took sounds of lots of us talking and other people talking, and mixed those together with the crunch sounds so we could generate an AI that could learn the sound of crunching and voicing,” Fashbaugh continued. “We needed to make something that could really separate the sounds of voices and crunches.”
And while the AI technology is technically “trained exclusively on Doritos,” according to Fashbaugh it does work on other chips, crackers, and even raw vegetables.
“Working with Doritos to create this cutting-edge technology has been an incredible journey,” Fashbaugh said in a press release. “We all know that gamers love Doritos, but that unmistakable crunch can often disrupt those intense gaming moments. With ‘Doritos Silent,’ we’ve worked to ensure gamers can enjoy the crunch of Doritos without disturbing their fellow players, making for a better gaming experience.”
Avid snackers can download the app and give it a try for themselves.