Anthropic's Claude Code now lets you use voice commands
What's the story
Anthropic has introduced a new feature, Voice Mode, to its AI coding assistant, Claude Code. The update is aimed at making the coding process more conversational and hands-free. Thariq Shihipar, an engineer at Anthropic, announced the gradual rollout of this feature on social media platform X. Currently, it is available to around 5% of users with plans for a wider release in the coming weeks.
User guide
Voice commands can be used to request coding tasks
The new feature allows users to interact with Claude Code using voice commands, making the coding experience more seamless. To activate it, users have to type /voice and then give their command verbally. For example, saying "refactor the authentication middleware" will prompt Claude Code to execute that request. The spoken commands are transcribed instantly at the cursor's position, eliminating any awkward transitions between speaking and typing.
Feature access
Availability and limitations
The Voice Mode feature is available for Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise users without any additional charges or limits. However, it is still unclear if there are any restrictions on voice interactions or specific technical limitations associated with this new capability. It also remains to be seen whether this feature was developed in partnership with a third-party AI voice provider like ElevenLabs.
Market performance
Claude Code's rapid growth
Despite stiff competition from Microsoft, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Google, and OpenAI, Claude Code has emerged as one of the most popular tools in the market. In February alone, Anthropic revealed that Claude Code's run-rate revenue exceeded $2.5 billion, more than doubling since beginning of 2026. The number of weekly active users has also doubled since January this year.