voice assistant
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Alexa adds in-depth NFL stats ahead of the new season
Alexa's football knowledge is now decidedly more profound. Amazon has added a slew of info to its voice assistant's repertoire that includes "comprehensive, in-depth" stats for NFL teams and their players. If you want to know your favorite player's rushing yards or how many penalty yards the team has racked up, it's just a quick question away. You can even ask about fantasy football scores if your reputation is on the line.
The BBC is developing its own voice assistant called 'Beeb'
Smart speakers may be getting more and more popular, but there's an issue continuing to hold them back -- voice assistants still have problems understanding accents. This is particularly true in Britain, which despite its small geographic size has a broad range of accents.
Microsoft contractors listened to what people told their Xbox consoles
Microsoft contractors reportedly listened to Xbox owners too. Earlier this month, we learned that contractors heard audio snippets from Skype calls and Cortana interactions. Now, Vice reports that Microsoft contractors also listened to audio picked up by Xbox consoles. The device was only supposed to capture audio after voice commands, like "Xbox" or "Hey Cortana," but contractors claim recordings were sometimes triggered accidentally.
Microsoft says humans will still transcribe Cortana and Skype audio
Just like seemingly every other major tech company with a voice assistant or voice chat service, it emerged that Microsoft contractors were listening to Skype and Cortana recordings. Apple, Google and Facebook have temporarily halted similar efforts, and Amazon lets users opt out of having Alexa conversations reviewed by humans. But Microsoft will continue the practice for the time being despite possible privacy concerns.
Samsung's Galaxy Home smart speaker is still alive, somehow
While Samsung's Unpacked event was mostly about the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+, a new S Pen and a Galaxy Book S laptop, plenty of observers expected some news on the fate of Galaxy Home. Samsung announced the smart speaker a year ago, but it's been beset by delays. Most recently, Samsung targeted a release window of the "mid-second half of the year" -- so perhaps sometime this quarter. The latest word is that Samsung is still working on the Bixby-powered device.
Alexa now speaks as slowly (or quickly) as you need
As of today, users in the US can ask their Alexa devices to speak slower or faster. The change is meant to make Alexa more accessible. Asking the voice assistant to speak slower could help people with hearing impairment better understand their device. And people who are blind or have visual impairments reportedly asked Amazon to speed up Alexa's responses.
Senators want answers from Google over Huawei's cancelled smart speaker (updated)
Huawei's Google-backed smart speaker might never have seen the light of day, but that isn't stopping politicians from asking questions about it. Republican Senators Josh Hawley, Tom Cotton and Marco Rubio have sent a letter to Google chief Sundar Pichai requesting answers about the never-announced device. They're concerned that the speaker could have served as a "listening device" for the Chinese, and that Google might have been "putting profits before country."
Google Assistant can read out text replies on WhatsApp and Telegram
Google Assistant has long had the option to read your SMS messages aloud, but that hasn't done much good if your conversations lived in third-party apps. That shouldn't be an issue for long. Both Android Police and 91mobiles have noticed that Google is rolling out the option to read messages from non-Google apps like WhatsApp, Slack and Telegram. You can dictate or type out replies, and there appears to be limited support for languages beyond English.
Apple suspends the Siri program where people listened to your questions
Just last week a report by The Guardian dug into a program where third-party contractors listened in to anonymized recordings of Apple users asking Siri questions to judge the assistant's responses, and now Apple has shut it down. In a statement to TechCrunch, the company said that while it conducts a "thorough" review, it's suspending the program globally. This comes shortly after Google announced it would temporarily shut down a similar effort, but only for users in the EU. While Apple has touted the privacy built into its products and derided models that mine user data for advertising, just like Amazon and Google it relies on real people to improve its AI assistant. However, as The Guardian's report indicated, listening in on real-world recordings could mean picking up all kinds of situations, including criminal activities and sexual encounters. As TechCrunch notes, its terms of service indicate that these programs exist, but exactly how much end-users understand about the possibility of being overheard by a real person -- even if less than one percent of queries are ever reviewed -- is unclear. While we don't know what will happen with the program or when it may restart, according to Apple a future software update will give users the option to explicitly choose whether they want to participate in grading. Apple: We are committed to delivering a great Siri experience while protecting user privacy. While we conduct a thorough review, we are suspending Siri grading globally. Additionally, as part of a future software update, users will have the ability to choose to participate in grading.
Google temporarily stops Assistant audio transcriptions in the EU
Google has halted the transcribing of recordings from its voice assistant in the EU. The company faced backlash last month after 1,000 private conversations recorded on its Google Assistant product were leaked to the Belgian news outlet VRT NWS. The tech giant is now voluntarily suspending the practice and assessing how it conducts audio reviews, reported CNBC.
Fitbit's next smartwatch could pack Alexa and an OLED screen
Fitbit said it would shift back to more innovative smartwatches after the Versa Lite floundered, and now we have an idea of just what it meant. Well-known leaker Evan Blass has obtained images of a future "Versa-class" smartwatch that clearly goes beyond the features of the standard Versa. Most conspicuously, it would support Amazon Alexa -- you could talk to your wrist much like you can with watches from the likes of Apple and Samsung.
Google Assistant finally comes to Dish's receivers
It only took half a year, but Dish's receivers are finally ready to work with Google Assistant. The satellite TV provider has started rolling out an update for Hoppers that lets you use the voice remote to check the weather, control your smart home and, of course, steer the Hopper itself. The update works with all Hopper generations as well as Joey and Wally devices.
Apple contractors frequently hear sensitive info in Siri recordings
As much as Apple emphasizes privacy, it hasn't completely avoided eyebrow-raising behavior. The Guardian has learned from a source that Siri quality control contractors regularly hear sensitive info, including medical info, criminal activities and even "sexual encounters," much like their counterparts at Amazon and Google. They're only listening to less than one percent of daily Siri activations, and frequently only for a few seconds each, but some of them include request-linked data like app info, contacts and locations. Like its peers, Apple is gauging how well its voice assistant is fulfilling requests and wants to know what happened after a command.
Microsoft tests a cleaner Xbox One Home screen (again)
Microsoft is rolling out a couple of tests that could change the look of Xbox One's Home section as well as how you control the console via Cortana. Xbox Insiders should be able to check out the updates in the next few days.
Pandora's Voice Mode is your personal music assistant
Pandora is rolling out Voice Mode to all users today. While you may have used Pandora voice controls on smart products like Amazon Alexa or Google Home, the new feature takes voice commands to the next level. It's meant to be more like a personal assistant for music, and it promises to deliver music selections tailored to each individual user.
Windows 10 preview could bring Alexa to your PC's lock screen
Amazon Alexa can be helpful on Windows, but you can't quite treat your PC like a supersized Echo when third-party voice helpers don't work until you've signed in. That might not be a hurdle in the near future. Microsoft has released a Windows 10 preview on the Slow ring that allows the use of third-party assistants "above" the lock screen. The company doesn't mention Alexa by name, but it's the only major AI helper on Windows beyond Cortana -- Amazon would just have to update its app to enable voice commands in more situations.
VW inadvertently offers a peek at the interior of its ID.3 EV
So much for VW keeping a tight lid on the ID.3's finished design. Auto Conspiracy and others have obtained a promo video for the electric hatchback's interior, showing an appropriately very connected machine. The early look suggests the ID.3 will use a slightly more Teutonic variant of the cabin from Seat's el-Born concept, with an all-screen instrument cluster, a likely 10-inch center touchscreen and a twistable shifter placed on the dash. However, the biggest addition may be what you can't see: modern voice control.
Sonos brings Google Assistant to its speakers in the UK
Sonos users in the UK will soon have another option to control their speakers, as Google Assistant support is arriving with a software update that's rolling out as of today. You can use the voice assistant to control your setup directly through Sonos One and Beam, or use a connected Google Home device or the Assistant app.
Google Assistant now offers navigation help in Waze
You might not have to touch your screen much at all the next time you navigate with Waze. Google is starting to roll out Assistant support in Waze for Android users, making some of its features available through (relatively) distraction-free voice control. You can report problems like traffic or crashes while still paying attention to the road, or tell Waze to avoid toll roads if you forgot to specify that before setting off.
A closer look at the Bose 700 noise-cancelling headphones
As great as the Bose QuietComfort 35 II headphones sound, let's be real: they look like they were designed for dads on a business trip. And listen, as someone who's into the whole chunky, dad-shoe trend, I'm not here to judge if you're into their design. I'm just saying that I need something with a more modern style. Thankfully, Bose has introduced its latest flagship model, the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, which features a newly designed stainless steel headband that gives them a more stylish and thinner look than the QuietComfort line. Bose says that the wireless 700s were designed from the ground up and, compared to the QC35 IIs, they also have all-new drivers, ear cushions and USB-C support.
