AI phone numbers: connect a number to a tested voice assistant
Understand carrier ownership, voice routing, recurring rental and call testing before using a telephone number with a voice assistant.
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An “AI phone number” is an ordinary telephone number routed to a voice assistant. The number, carrier connection and assistant are separate resources. Buying a number does not by itself configure an assistant or prove callers can have a two-way conversation.
Trace the route
For an inbound call, the carrier receives the call and routes it to the configured voice service. In Burki's current architecture, LiveKit rooms carry the live media session and an admitted worker runs the selected assistant. Business actions and billing remain application responsibilities.
The assistant may use a realtime speech model or a supported recognition/model/synthesis configuration. The number itself does not dictate which model produces the conversation.
Decide how to use an existing number
Ask the current carrier which forwarding, SIP or porting arrangements are available for the exact number and account. These options have different ownership, billing and recovery implications. Keep the existing route available until the new route is tested and the business approves the change.
Do not infer carrier acceptance from a logo or API integration. Burki exposes carrier-specific readiness; the selected account, number, direction and route must be supported. A working Telnyx path does not establish equivalent Twilio or Vonage acceptance.
Budget for the separate resources
| Cost | What to check |
|---|---|
| Number rental | Recurring charge and cancellation terms even when no calls occur |
| Telephone usage | Direction, destination, duration and additional call legs |
| Voice generation | The selected model/provider's billing units and configured tariff |
| Platform and optional services | Platform usage, recording/storage and other enabled operations |
Inspect pricing and the current preflight quote. A paused assistant or a quiet phone number does not necessarily stop the carrier's recurring rental. Review and release unused numbers deliberately after checking dependencies.
Test before publishing the number
First practice the assistant's instructions in the browser. Then make a controlled telephone call through the actual route. Verify caller and assistant audio, an interruption, the intended task, hangup, cleanup and settled usage.
Test human routing separately if the business needs it, including an unavailable destination. There is no fixed setup-time promise: carrier access, account restrictions, integration work and acceptance can each take time.
An existing menu can be mapped using IVR Explorer, but an observed map is a starting point for review, not proof that every branch has been migrated.
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