Tag: siri

Apple And Google Will No Longer Listen To Private Conversations

Previously, several reports had surfaced that accused both Apple and Google of listening to users’ private conversations. Both companies explained through their official channels that the recordings were transcribed to improve their respective voice assistants. Now, Apple and Google are reportedly shutting down the program which had contractors listen in on private conversations.

Google Assistant and Apple’s Siri are both voice assistants that occasionally sent voice recordings of their surroundings to their parent companies. The companies claimed that they had started the program of hiring contractors, who listened to the recordings, for the purpose of improving the user interaction with the voice assistants. As of today, Google and Apple have suspended their respective programs after facing backlash from the community and regulatory bodies.

Apple in a statement said that they wanted to conduct a global review of its program to retain trust users trust in privacy. Grading had third party contractors listen to the recordings from Siri. Now, users can opt-in for the program and participate in grading. Furthermore, Google after having faced allegations, after its Dutch user recording was leaked, has also suspended its voice assistant program. Its “Hey Google” wake word had inadvertently triggered and had recorded many private and sensitive moments. Hence, the company will review its program as well.

Notably, the concerns raised over user privacy have become an increasingly sensitive aspect in the European regions. It is expected that Governmental regulatory bodies will soon step in and investigate the matter separately. However, the issue has expanded to an international level and should require some form of mediation if carried forward.

Also Read: Sony Announces Online Challenger Series Tournament For Every PS4 User

The digital world has dug its roots deep into humans’ lives. We are now observing much more at risk than ever regarding our privacy and data. Companies like Google and Apple operate on a global scale and have influences over a much broader audience. It is a daunting prospect to think about when considering the control these companies have over the general public. Stay tuned for more updates regarding the matter.

August 2, 2019
The Apple HomePod Is Getting 5 New Features

Although the highlight of the Apple Special event last night was the lineup of new iPhones, Apple did manage to slip in a little bit extra. The Apple HomePod is going to be receiving a few new features. These will probably bring it up to speed with its competition in the smart speaker segment.

The update involves increasing the capability of Siri with respect to the HomePod. Other than these features, Apple has also added support for a few languages in the HomePod. The device now supports Spanish in the US, Spain and Mexico and expands support in Canada with Canadian French.

With Siri on HomePod, you can also access these new features:

Search by lyrics: Until now, users could ask Siri to play a specific song. Now, you can ask Siri to play any song. Even if you can’t remember the name. Just say “play the song that goes like this…” and Siri will do the needful.

Set multiple timers: This is a big boon for those who are working on a project with multiple steps or someone setting up for a big dinner party. With multiple timers, you can ask Siri to keep you on track for getting that cake out of the oven, making sure you switch on those new lights and much more.

Make and receive phone calls: Now, HomePod lets you make and receive calls directly. You can also ask Siri to know who called incase you missed a call. To make a call, you can speak out a number or the name of the person you want to call.

Find my iPhone: This feature lets you ping for your iPhone in case you cannot figure out where you left it. This is already available in the Apple Watch.

Siri Shortcuts: HomePod users will now be able to set multiple actions into play with just one command. This is pretty similar to Alexa and Google Routines. What this means is you can program Siri to perform multiple actions using a single command. For example, “Hey Siri, good morning” is a single command. With this Siri could order your morning coffee, turn on your kitchen lights and share your calendar appointments for the day.

The launch date for this update is not known. It is expected around the time the iOS 12 is rolled out. That is on 17th September. Apple has not announced the update for India.

September 13, 2018
Most Apple iPhone X Users Love Their iPhone But Not Siri

The Apple iPhone X, even before its launch, garnered a lot of attention for its possible design. On 12th September, Apple confirmed those rumours and unveiled the iPhone X with a notch and nearly bezel-less design. Face ID, introduced with the iPhone X as a replacement for Touch ID was met with scepticism at first but, has since been praised for accuracy and ease of use. This was further reaffirmed by a recent survey conducted by Creative Strategies which concluded that 97% of early adopters of iPhone X are satisfied by their new iPhone.

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According to the survey, 85% of the participants said that they were “very satisfied” with the iPhone X. Creative Strategies analyst Ben Bajarin has said that this is among the highest he has ever seen in all the customer satisfaction studies they have conducted across a range of technology products. 12% respondents said they were “satisfied” with the iPhone X. The remaining 3% were unsatisfied to various degrees.

Apple conducted a similar survey of 451 people and said that 99% respondents were satisfied with their iPhone X. However, Creative Strategies has 1746 people which meant there was more room for slight variance. According to the research firm, the respondents were profiled as early adopters based on a series of questions about their purchasing habits. Also, early adopters tend to be more critical than mainstream consumers of technology, according to the research firm.

Coming down to the nitty-gritty of the survey, Face ID and battery life saw satisfaction rates of above 90%. Other features were also very well accepted by early adopters of the iPhone X, apart from Siri. The Apple voice assistant scored only a 20% satisfaction rate among the 1746 respondents.

Siri has been under the cosh recently after details about the dwindling HomePod sales were released. It is believed that HomePod has had an underwhelming start mainly because of its price and Siri. Its competitors like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant are considered to be far superior in smartphones as well as smart speakers. With WWDC 2018 coming up, we expect Apple to unveil new Siri features which will make the user experience much better than what it is right now.

April 24, 2018
Siri Might Soon Start Whispering To You In Public

It is no secret that a lot of companies believe that machine learning and AI is future of smartphones. Big tech companies like Apple, Google and Samsung have already invested big in Artificial Intelligence and have their own AI assistant in their smartphones. One such assistant is Apple’s own Siri. Siri, just like many other assistants can play music, set reminders and make a shopping list according to your text or voice commands.

But, it can get a bit embarrassing if you’re in a public transport talking to your phone and this robot is responding to you in full volume. And no matter how much you whisper, Siri responds in the default volume. This new patent from Apple might solve this issue, and make Siri smart enough to understand when you’re whispering.

First spotted by Gizmodo, the patent details a feature that would enable Siri to discern when a user is whispering to it and, in turn, offer up a response in a silent whisper. Alex Rudnicky, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University’s Language Technologies Institute, told Gizmodo:

The technology could come out any time because the component technologies are pretty straightforward. The ways that they’re doing this is kind of textbook speech processing but, working up an algorithm to decide when to go into “whisper mode” would be more complicated. I can’t really say why nobody’s come up with this solution. But once you hear it, it sounds really reasonable. Why not?

This feature won’t make someone start using Siri every day and neither will this feature make it into an ad for the next iPhone but, it will surely make other companies strive to make their AI assistants smarter.

December 15, 2017
Apple Pushes The Launch Of HomePod Smart Speaker To Early 2018

The holiday season is a time when companies try to push their marquee products into the market to take advantage of an average consumer’s spending spree. Apple Inc however, has decided to evade this season and wait till early next year to launch its much awaited foray into the smart speaker industry. HomePod, the Siri powered smart speaker which was unveiled back in June will start shipping to the US, UK and Australia in only early 2018.

The smart speaker industry has become more competitive this year and launching a first smart speaker at the end of 2017 was already a but late from Apple. Amazon’s Echo lineup and Alphabet Inc’s Google Home speakers have been dominating the market and with a price tag of US $349, the HomePod already have a stiff competition from its own price tag.

Amazon Echo Dot Retails For US $49

Bob O’Donnell, founder of Technalysis Research, said, “Apple has forecast between $84 billion and $87 billion in revenue for the holiday – mostly driven by sales of its $999 iPhone X – so it’s unlikely that missing a few weeks of sales of its $349 speaker will affect its financial results.”

AI Assistants are more used in smart speakers than phones. Even if the majority of Echo or Google Home users own an iPhone, it is highly likely that they’re talking to Alexa or Google Assistant more than Siri.

Google Home Mini retails for US $49 as well

Another big responsibilty on the shoulders of the HomePod is Apple Music. The rival smart speakers play music from Spotify, even though Google and Amazon have their own music streaming services. The HomePod however, will not have this option and will drive more people to subscribe to Apple Music and the rise of rival Spotify.

November 18, 2017
Siri Will Now Search Google For Answers Instead Of Bing

Apple is dropping Microsoft’s Bing as the default search platform for Siri, Search inside iOS, and Spotlight on Macs in favour of Google search.

According Apple. this move is to create a more “consistent web search experience” for its users, since Google is currently the default search engine on its Safari browser thanks to a reported $3 billion annual deal between the two companies. Bing, however, will continue to search for images for queries through Siri. A statement by Apple about the decision read:

Switching to Google as the web search provider for Siri, Search within iOS and Spotlight on Mac will allow these services to have a consistent web search experience with the default in Safari. We have strong relationships with Google and Microsoft and remain committed to delivering the best user experience possible.

Bing has been iOS’ default search engine since iOS 7 in 2013. Microsoft has since held on to this position but, it looks like the $3 billion deal between Apple and Google may have played a part in this decision swaying towards Google. However, this cannot be said for sure without knowing the terms of the deal. The new macOS High Sierra version has now rolled out for download and after the installation, Mac owners will observe that their Spotlight search will be powered by Google, and not Bing like it was before. iOS device owners should have the update, too.

The fact that image search on Siri will still show Bing results is a little odd but it looks like this feature will also be phased out of iOS in time and Google will become the sole search engine for all iOS and macOS devices.

September 26, 2017
The Rock is Making a Movie With Siri

Remember last year’s Taylor swift and Apple music collaboration, well Apple is back at it.

Rumours about the Siri integrated wireless charging have barely subsided and now Siri has been reported to star in a movie along with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

While most of us are busy bossing Siri around, the voice assistant has managed to get its own movie titled, The Rock x Siri: Dominate The Day. Dominating the day or not, Siri is definitely dominating Hollywood now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufBLI6bB9sg

Despite initially describing it as a “Movie”, Johnson now says that his partnership with Apple is a commercial.

Haha it’s a crazy fun commercial we’ll drop tomorrow. Dominate your day brother ??

— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) July 23, 2017

The extended commercial or a movie is a collaboration between Johnson and Apple. The “movie” made quite an entrance with an over-the-top poster featuring automobiles, satellites, space, car crashes etc.

The Rock also tweeted along with the poster of The Rock x Siri: Dominate The Day.

Teamed w/ @Apple to make the biggest, coolest, sexiest, funnest (is that a word?) movie ever. Drops TOMORROW!#ROCKxSIRI #DominateYourDay?? pic.twitter.com/STwlCPsVUh

— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) July 23, 2017

By the looks of his Facebook page, Johnson seems quite excited about the collab. In his own words, the movie will be the “dopest” and was made to “motivate you to get out there and get the job done.”

The film itself will be released on July 24th, on Apple’s YouTube channel. Unlike most of the content being exclusive to Apple Music, Apple’s Siri co-starring movie with The Rock will be available for free on YouTube.

With Apple releasing the Siri integrated HomePod in a couple of months, this seems like an excellent opportunity to show that Apple’s virtual assistant can be held at par with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

July 24, 2017
Apple Working On a Siri Activated Wireless Charging Dock

The rumours about Apple bringing wireless charging to its iPhone 8 lineup have been innumerous. Given its membership in the wireless power consortium, Apple is likely to depend upon the Qi inductive standard for its rumoured new feature. For a feature like wireless charging, the company will most likely have to come up with a pad- like device, may be like a -Siri powered wireless charging dock. And considering that Apple has recently been granted a new patent which states, “Smart dock for activating a voice recognition mode of a portable electronic device,” the company might just roll out a Siri powered dock sometime in the future.

The patent describes a device that could serve as a dock for “a portable electronic device”, an iPhone outfitted with microphones for voice commands, allowing the users to access the phone from a distance, processors and wireless charging. The microphone installation in dock indicates it being powered by Siri. Further, the patent also states multiple ways of powering the iPhone which includes wireless charging, docks that range from basic microphone and speaker integrated connectors to mini computers with displays.

Filed back in 2012, the patent defines Siri integration in the dock as “a voice recognition mode of the portable electronic device,” than a built in feature but considering the upcoming trends in the tech world, Apple might infuse Siri directly in the dock. The filing date of the patent also suggests that Apple might have been working on the idea for a while.

Amidst all the ongoing rumours and announcements, the $349 HomePod, one of the upcoming Apple product is also expected to hit the stores in December. The Siri supported speaker is rumoured to serious contender against the Amazon Echo and Google Home. As to when the Siri powered wireless charging will be announced or if it ever will be, its all upto Apple. Amongst all the speculation, we still can’t claim it for sure until Apple officially announces the rumoured Siri connected dock.

July 21, 2017
Apple announces iOS 10, Focuses Big on User Experience

Apple has updated iOS to iOS 10, and now it focuses big on user experience.

Lock Screen

Apple has improved the look of the lock screen, with the support for 3D Touch, you can now swipe right to access the camera and swipe left to get to the today screen.

Apps will now be able to showcase their live content in widgets including images and video streams on the today screen.

You can 3D touch to reply and have conversations from lock screen which will include media responses.

Siri

Siri gets a big update and gets open to developers, now allowing you to book rides, and respond to messages on WhatsApp or book tickets using your favorite app. You can also initiate Skype calls among many other things you will be able to do later on thanks to developers utilizing this entirely.

QuickType

Using a new, predictive long type, algorithm the keyboard can predict what you are trying to say. The keyboard will share your location or automatically fill out calendars for you using your recent messages. Even remember addresses you were browsing and fill out a new address entry for you.

Photos

Photos now will use billions of algorithms on each picture to find out what is in the picture to help you organize them quickly. You also get instant montages for your memories. You can also change the mood and music to these montages, much like what we have seen in Zoe from HTC.

Maps

Maps get a big update with respect to look and functionality. Maps now understands your schedule and suggests locations. You can also sort searches for the type of cuisine if you are searching for restaurants, or you can see suggestions on your route for cafe’s in case you are feeling sleepy. Apple is opening Maps to third party developers to allow usage of Maps within their apps.

Apple Music

Apple music app gets a redesign, and it reminds us a lot of Windows Phone’s UI. The newly downloaded music tap allows users to look at all their music downloaded from Apple Music and sort it in their preferred order. The now playing tab includes lyrics of every song on Apple Music, and you can read as the song plays.

News

Apple News gets a redesign as well; you can also get new breaking news notifications. The App will also allow for Subscriptions from your favorite publications.

Apple Home

Apple Home is the first major all-new app today. It builds on Apple’s HomeKit infrastructure to let you manage and control all your connected and compatible accessories around the home.

Phone App

The new phone app gets VOIP support so you will no longer see notifications, but a full fledged call for your VOIP calls.

Messages

Messages gets a big update, with bubble effects, digital touch photos, and videos much like Snapchat. You can now play music directly from the messages app. You can also reply to images by double tap and send a small heart. The Emoji feature allows you to convert words to Emoji. Emoji is also three times bigger in the new Messages app. Replies can now have effects too. You can also send handwritten messages. Apple Messages almost similar to Google’s Allo allowing you to collaborate over dinner orders or movie screenings primarily using apps to communicate with friends.

Finally, Apple is opening Messages to Developers.

Other features include Split View on the iPad to allow browsing two safari windows at the same time. You will get live photos editing, Conversation view on Mail and the whole eco system gets end to end encryption.

June 13, 2016
Apple to Bring Siri for Mac with OS X 10.12 Launch

It has always been clear that Apple’s main focus has been towards its iPhones. Yes, the Cupertino giant has a bunch of other products as well that sometimes tend to get pushed into the background, like its Macs. But that won’t be the case four months from now when Apple launches the OS X 10.12 that will introduce Siri for Mac.

Siri, the personal voice assistant for the iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch will now come to the Mac as well. Apple has been busy testing versions of OS X with Siri for the past 3 years. After working out and polishing the interface, Apple will be ready to launch the feature publicly. Over the years, Apple has improved Siri’s functionality a lot, making it faster, smarter, more responsive and more personalised.

Back in September, news about Apple hiring Artificial Intelligence experts to improve Siri’s functionality made the rounds. Apple had hired at least 86 AI experts to work on machine learning alone, as well as employees with doctorates specializing in AI. It turned out that Apple’s effort did pay off as it launched a new and improved Siri during its September event. In terms of accuracy, Siri beats Google Now and Cortana, according to reports that came out in November.

Coming back to Siri for Mac, the voice assistant will have an icon placed in the OS X menu bar (next to the Spotlight magnifying glass icon) that will activate once clicked. Similar to the way it works on the iPhone, the Siri interface with the trippy colored sound waves will appear on the top right of the screen to indicate speech command.

Siri on the Mac will also have its own option in System Preferences. Siri will be able to respond to “Hey Siri” when the Mac is plugged to a power source, much like it is with the iPhone 6. The upcoming update to OS X is not likely to feature too many changes, but will rather come with some performance tweaks and minor software updates. It is also rumoured that Apple has begun development of iOS 10, and details on that may start pouring in, in the weeks to come.

Source

February 25, 2016
Cortana Comes to iOS and Android, With Especial Features for Cyanogen

Microsoft revealed in an official announcement that Cortana is now available on select iOS, Android and Cyanogen OS powered devices. It is available in the US and China for iPhones running iOS 8 and above and Android 4.1.2 and above. For OnePlus One powered by Cyanogen OS in the US, it will be made available later this month with the 12.1.1 over-the-air update.

“…as a result of our close partnership with Cyanogen, we created a more integrated experience to enable Cortana’s voice activation ‘Hey Cortana’ on Cyanogen devices so you can call on her while on any screen or when you’re immersed in an app,” says Microsoft.

The Android and the iOS version of Cortana look pretty much the same as the Windows version that came out earlier this year in July. However, there will be some differences in the capabilities of the assistant across various operating systems owing to API availability of the respective platforms.

It would be interesting to see if Cortana on an iOS device makes its mark. Features like “Hey Cortana” hands-free capability and SMS replies from the PC for missed calls would be missing on iPhones, putting the voice-enabled personal assistant at a disadvantage over Siri. In a recent survey where Cortana, Siri and Google Now were put to test, Siri had emerged as the winner in accuracy. Let’s see if Cortana’s presence on Android and iOS devices can change that. It’s available in the App Store and the Google Play Store in the US as of now.

December 10, 2015
Siri Beats Google Now and Cortana in Accuracy Tests
Ever wondered who will take the cake in a face-off between Siri, Cortana and Google Now? You are not the only one if you have because a company called Experts-Exchange in the US thinks just like you. The three virtual voice activated personal assistants were put to a test where they were asked four questions each and given three tasks to complete. The participants had to keep a record of the follow-up question each assistant required and closely watch for accuracy.

The following questions were made part of the test:
- Who won the Super Bowl in 1978?
- How many calories in a muffin?
- Where can I buy tires?
- When is “Kung Fu Panda 3” coming out?
The three tasks that the virtual assistants were supposed to perform included:
- Ask your phone to set an appointment
- Turn the Wi-Fi setting on
- Send a text message.
In terms of the stats, when the first question was asked about the Super Bowl in 1978, Siri answered correctly 95.3% of the times, satisfying 86.1% of the participants. Google Now answered it correctly 88% of the times, and 80% of the times it responded with a web search. As far as Cortana goes, the wrong answer was given a mere 3.3% of the times.

When asked to set an appointment, Siri once again took the lead by being correct 92.3% of the times, satisfying 89.2% of the users. This was followed by Google Now being correct at 81.3% and satisfying 80% of the users. Cortana came in last with 73.3% and 70% respectively.

The total number of satisfied users for the three virtual assistants were 81% for Siri, followed by Google Now at 68% and Cortana at 57%. Siri also had the lowest number of incorrect answers, and found itself in a tie with Google Now for having least answers that were responded with a web search.

While the test results should be a matter of concern for Google and Microsoft, it should be noted that there was a certain pattern that both, virtual assistants as well as participants, followed. People living in the Western states seemed more satisfied with Siri than those living in the Eastern parts of the country. Conversely, Google Now and Cortana saw themselves faring better with people from Eastern states.

Also, follow-up questions with Google Now and Cortana were twice as much for women as men. On the other hand, Siri asked more follow-up questions with men than with women. This suggests a pattern and structure in the manner the questions were put forth by both men and women.

Have you ever conducted a similar face off? Which is your favourite virtual voice activated personal assistant? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://www.phonearena.com/news/Testing-shows-Siri-beating-out-Google-Now-and-Cortana-for-accuracy-user-satisfaction-and-more_id75601″]PhoneArena[/tw-button]
November 10, 2015
This Is How Siri and Google Now Can Help Hackers Break Into Your Phone

Next time you think of leaving your wired headphones plugged into your iOS or Android phone, think again. The wires of headphones act as antennae which can be used to hack into your phone with the right equipment. Welcome to the world of hacking where radiowaves are the newest tool.

A group of researchers at a French government security unit have figured out a way to send silent commands to phones. All that they needed was a laptop and an antennae -things that fit pretty much in a bag.

Like FM radio chips, the antenna on the headphones catch radiowaves to convey the command of the hacker to your handset. Depending on these commands, your phone can be used to make calls, send messages, open websites, subvert governments or spark a revolution. However, since this specific kind of hacking doesn’t disable the display of the phone, users are highly likely to realise if their phones start obeying ‘silent’ instructions.

This test was conducted from a distance of 6 feet, with above average gadgets. If they throw in slightly fancier gadgets, hacking would be possible from a distance of up to 16 feet. Looks like it’s time for Apple and Google to sit up and listen.

October 16, 2015
Apple Hires Artificial Intelligence Experts to Up Siri’s Game

As Apple closes in on the much talked about launch on the 9^th of September, the company is already busy searching for artificial-intelligence experts to help improve Siri’s functionality that has become stale in comparison to Google Now and Microsoft’s Cortana. Both competitors believe that the customers want an AI system that provides information catered specifically to their time and location, something Siri has failed to deliver.

To up their game, Apple has decided to hire at least 86 AI experts to work on machine learning alone, as well as employees with doctorates specializing in AI. According to a report by Reuters, the company’s user privacy that limits the amount of data sent from the iPhone to the servers, which makes it a challenge to improve Siri’s AI.

“As part of its push, the company is currently trying to hire at least 86 more employees with expertise in the branch of artificial intelligence known as machine learning, according to a recent analysis of Apple job postings. The company has also stepped up its courtship of machine-learning PhD’s, joining Google, Amazon, Facebook and others in a fierce contest, leading academics say.” – Reuters

The major problems for Siri, at the moment, are that it is lacking in both personal touch and information. Responses provided by Siri are far too rigid, allowing for only a simple user-requested reply. Limited data to the servers mean a limited knowledge of individual users and tastes. While trying to maintain the same level of user privacy, Apple Inc. is looking for solutions that will go around it and still deliver a smarter, personal Siri.

In the upcoming launch on the 9^th of September, Apple hopes to bring a faster, smarter version of Siri with its iOS 9 upgrade, which will provide users with information based on time and location using a feature called Proactive. Commenting on the iOS 9, Craig Federighi, Apple’s SVP of software engineer said that it was “adding intelligence throughout the user experience in a way that enhances how you use your device but without compromising your privacy.” Though one may have to wait for the iPhone 7 (expected next year) for a fully improved Siri, the Apple has been teasing with a number of coy and witty replies when asked “Hey Siri, give us a hint” as part of Apple’s invites for the launch on the 9^th of September.

Yes Siri, we know – new iPhones arrive this week! In other news – @kalbereanimesh is the final winner of our 5-Day Karbonn Mach Five Giveaway, congratulations! #iGyaanLife #iPhone6s #Apple #TechLife

A photo posted by iGyaan Network (@igyaan) on Sep 6, 2015 at 9:21pm PDT

And with smarter, more cryptic replies such as:

A photo posted by iGyaan Network (@igyaan) on Sep 8, 2015 at 11:18pm PDT

These various responses hint at the possibility that a new and improved Siri might be here sooner than expected. Until then, you can poke Siri for more hints.

September 9, 2015
Facebook Brings Out its Very Own Artificial Intelligence Assistant Named “M”

We all know about Siri, Cortana and Google Now, but yesterday our favourite social media platform, Facebook launched “M”. M is its very own text-based virtual assistant, which is also integrated with Facebook Messenger. What is different about M, is that it relies on both human and artificial intelligence to fulfill requests. This is something that both Siri and Cortana need to catch up on.

Reports suggest that there is a team of M Trainers, who are prepared and trained to fulfill requests that the artificial intelligence component cannot answer. It is also said, that as of now, the artificial intelligence does not have access to all the social data that Facebook collects and therefore has to depend on the information available through earlier conversations and follow-up questions. This however could change “with proper user consent” says Facebook’s VP of messaging products, David Marcus.

What makes M’s activities different from Siri, Cortana or Google Now? Well, an example of what it can do is this – it can allow people to get recommendations for vacations and restaurants for instance, and can also follow through with bookings or purchases.

David Marcus also added that Facebook is planning to hire thousands of M trainers in the future. This artificial intelligence assistant can be good for Facebook’s financial strength, since it can generate money via various partnerships with businesses.

The sad part is, that currently M is only available to residents of California’s Bay Area. This has been reported to be an intentional move, so as to, ensure commonality between M trainers and the people making requests. The product will be launched on Messenger apps all around the world, soon. Watch this space for more updates.

Source : [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://www.wired.com/2015/08/facebook-launches-m-new-kind-virtual-assistant/”]Wired [/tw-button]

August 27, 2015