Canadian city app has a voice assistant powered by Watson

Watson can beat human Jeopardy players, help people cook, critique their writing -- and apparently, it can even help the citizens of Surrey, British Columbia with their everyday life. Software developer Purple Forge has tapped into the supercomputer's capabilities to give the Canadian city's app the capacity to answer spoken questions asked in natural language. Fast Company has dubbed the new My Surrey feature "Siri for cities," and it can answer queries about parking, waste collection and animal control (such as "Why wasn't my trash picked up this morning?" and "How many dogs can I keep on my property?"), among other municipal services.

While residents can ask the app whatever they want, it also has a frequently asked questions section for easy browsing. Since My Surrey is available for iPhones, iPads, Android devices and even Apple Watches, the local government's hoping it can reduce calls made to city services, considering most people have access to smartphones these days. Purple Forge CEO Brian Hurley claims other Canadian municipalities want in on the Watson action, as well, so don't be surprised if other local apps in the country debut their own voice assistant in the future.

[Image credit: Atomic Taco/Flickr]