Speech-recognition software converts the sound waves in a person’s voice, captured by a microphone, into different vibration patterns. The software’s algorithms then use machine learning to train a device to identify those patterns as words and phrases. The more the algorithms catalogue spoken language, the better the software becomes at interpreting speech. Add in GPS, mapping software and data gathered by cameras, accelerometers and other sensors, and a voice assistant such as Alexa or Apple’s Siri begins to build context that helps it, for example, suggest a nearby restaurant and give driving directions to get you there.
In Demand
Demand for this technology has grown sharply, despite its shortcomings, which include difficulty picking out commands in a noisy room and understanding accents. In a Pew Research Center survey of 4,135 people in December the majority of respondents reported their voice assistants accurately responded to commands “most” (39 percent) or “some” (42 percent) of the time. Still, 16 percent of users said the assistants accurately respond to their commands “not very often.”
The technology’s greatest strength at the moment is its ability to almost instantaneously provide users with information or entertainment, says Andrew McStay, a professor of digital life at Bangor University’s School of Creative Studies and Media in Wales. “Digital voice assistants remove the need to type out requests—it’s a much more natural mode of interaction,” McStay says. But he adds the devices sometimes lack important contextual understanding of what a person is trying to say—which “can be quite frustrating.”
There are still kinks to iron out before digital voice assistants are as useful as touch screens, agrees Murray Goulden, a senior research fellow at University of Nottingham’s School of Sociology and Social Policy in England. “My main experience after using Alexa in my home for two days was telling the kids to be quiet so that I could communicate with [the device],” Goulden says. “Alexa’s voice recognition is impressive, but if there’s any background noise, then she’s hopeless.” The technology seems to be designed for individual users but “that is not necessarily the dynamic when you bring technology into the home,” Goulden notes.
The Cost
Privacy concerns are not necessarily deal breakers for many consumers but they are certain to grow as the technology proliferates. Apple announced its HomePod smart speaker last June and intends to start selling it this year. The company already builds Siri into a number of its products including the iPad, Mac and Apple TV. Samsung introduced its Bixby voice-controlled digital assistant last year and plans to include the technology on all of its devices by 2020. The Family Hub refrigerator, a smart icebox that Samsung introduced at the CES, includes Bixby as well as a touch screen to control an internal camera, which can send notifications to household members when it needs to be restocked. Moen, a maker of faucets and other plumbing equipment, introduced at the CES a $1,200 digitally controlled shower system whose water temperature and flow can be controlled with voice commands via Alex or Siri. Home goods retailer Kohler took things a step further by introducing its Numi intelligent toilet, which includes voice-controlled ambient lighting in variable colors, Bluetooth connectivity and a heated seat and foot warmer.
It is also unclear how families will be able to easily manage data collected in the home, Goulden says. “You can’t manage access to that data the way you have in the past such as with passwords tied to a single user account,” he adds. “It isn’t clear who should have access to what data, because it will be contributed by multiple different members of the household. The privacy boundaries between us and those we live with are complex, both highly nuanced and changing over time—for example, as kids become young adults.”
