Amazon's Alexa moves in on Google's Android system
Amazon.com Inc’s
digital assistant appeared almost everywhere at the CES technology show this
week in Las Vegas, even making an unexpected appearance on rival Google’s
Android system.Companies ranging from appliance maker Whirlpool
Corp to Ford Motor Co unveiled products featuring Alexa, the digital assistant
from Amazon that responds to voice commands.Most strikingly, Chinese firm Huawei Technologies Co [HWT.UL],
which manufactures smartphones running on the Android operating system produced
by Alphabet Inc's Google, announced that its flagship handset will come with an
app that gives users access to Alexa in the United States.The adoption of Alexa by a prominent Android manufacturer
indicates that Amazon may have opened up an early lead over Google as the
companies race to present their digital assistants to as many people as
possible, analysts said.Many in the technology industry believe that such
voice-powered digital assistants will supplant keyboards and touch screens as a
primary way consumers interact with devices.While the shift is only in the early stages, Google must
establish a strong presence quickly, particularly on Android devices, to
maintain its dominance in internet search, said analyst Jan Dawson of Jackdaw
Research.“To the extent that voice becomes more important and
something other than Google’s voice assistant becomes the most popular voice
interface on Android phones, that’s a huge loss for Google in terms of data
gathering, training its AI (artificial intelligence), and ultimately the
ability to drive advertising revenue,” he said.Alexa debuted on the Amazon Echo smart
speaker, and Amazon is establishing a broad array of hardware and software
partnerships around it.
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