Abstract
<title>Abstract</title> <p>Guided by design and development research (DDR) Type 1, this research project aims to design and develop a generative AI (GenAI) tool in the form of a mobile phone application designed to address a persistent challenge faced by English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. These learners encounter limited opportunities to practice spoken English at their convenience, contributing to lowering their motivation. It is hoped that the proposed GenAI-powered app serves as a conversational partner, enabling learners to enhance their speaking skills through regular, unrestricted interaction. The app is designed by operationalizing the ADDIE model, providing a systematic approach to analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. Further, using Google AI Studio (Live Voice) platform, the app is theoretically designed based on the MUSIC Model of Motivation, incorporating its principles to foster learner engagement. By aligning the app features with motivational constructs such as empowerment, usefulness, success, interest, and caring, the tool aspires to support learners in improving their oral proficiency while concurrently boosting their motivation and confidence. In addition, the app allows the users to choose from varying levels of difficulty, offering a personalized and flexible language learning experience. Findings showed that the SBuddy application demonstrated notably high scores across three key dimensions: motivation, perceived usefulness, and design aesthetics. Additionally, participants provided substantive feedback and recommendations that may inform the continued development and refinement of future versions of SBuddy.</p>