Voice Recognition

TV Industry Scrambling to Beat Apple to the Punch

Cody Lee ∙ December 9, 2011

The rumor mill can be fairly accurate when it comes to predicting major Apple products. There was tons of gossip regarding an Apple smartphone for at least a year leading up to the iPhone announcement. And the same goes with iPad rumors.

Manufacturers, for some reason, have always ignored the chatter surrounding Apple rumors. But it looks like the folks in the TV industry aren't going to make that mistake this time around, as reports are coming in that TV-makers are already working on implementing voice control technology to beat Apple to the punch.

Why Apple Released Siri in Beta

Cody Lee ∙ December 6, 2011

Siri has garnered a lot of media attention over the last month. Even hackers with intentions to port the digital assistant to other devices are making headlines. But along with all of the attention comes criticism. There's a lot of folks that feel Siri isn't worth the hype.

Apple has taken quite a bit of heat over releasing Siri, even though it's labelled as "beta." The company is typically known for releasing finely-tuned products that "just work," and Siri doesn't seem to fit that bill. But maybe Apple felt that it had to release Siri...

ESRA: A Siri-Like Assistant For Older iOS 5 Devices

Jeff Benjamin ∙ December 5, 2011

Let me preface this by saying that ESRA will be a disappointment to those who are expecting it to compete with Siri.

Now that the disclaimer is out of the way, let's talk more about this jailbreak app. ESRA stands for Experimental Speech Response Application, and as you can see from the video, it more than lives up to the "experimental" portion of the ESRA acronym...

Meet Siri’s Competition on Android: Cluzee

Alex Heath ∙ Updated August 24, 2016

Android has its own Siri, at least that is what the creators of Cluzee would like you to believe. The new app is even called your "intelligent personal assistant," and Cluzee tries to mimic many features that Siri users will recognize, including the ability to dictate text in emails and set up appointments using natural, everyday language.

Cluzee is a third party service for Android, meaning that it isn't backed by Google. The service looks to work exactly like Siri, but the voice commands that Cluzee recognizes are much more limited than Apple's technology.

SiriProxy Plugins Arrive for Controlling Mac Apps and Google Voice

Oliver Haslam ∙ November 27, 2011

Barely 12 hours goes by without a handful of new SiriProxy plugins surfacing that blow our minds, and we've come across a few more that we thought might blow your minds, too.

Put together and shown off on YouTube by Ian McDowell, these new plugins bring the power of Siri to Google Voice on the iPhone, but more impressively, allow the launching of, and interaction with apps on a Mac. Sending messages using Google's telephony app is one thing, but launching apps on your computer is a completely different one.

The control of a Mac towards the end of the five-minute video certainly has a Star Trek feel to it, even down to the "Computer" prefix added to Ian's commands...

Siri vs. Microsoft’s Tellme Voice Control Feature

Cody Lee ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Microsoft and its chief strategy and research officer Craig Mundie have been taking a lot of smack over the past couple of days. Mundie made some controversial comments regarding Apple's new Siri feature during a recent interview with Forbes Magazine.

The executive claimed that Microsoft has had Siri-like technology on its Windows Phone platform for over a year, and that Apple's success with it has been the result of "good marketing." But the two systems are miles apart, and here's a video to prove it...

Siri Proxy Makes Starting Your Car With Your Voice a Reality

Oliver Haslam ∙ November 25, 2011

A few days ago we told you about one clever fellow who had found a way to create a 'Siri proxy,' allowing him to intercept Siri commands. This, in theory, makes Siri compatible with just about anything with an API, and the original proof of concept demonstrated Siri controlling a thermostat.

Now it seems that proof of concept has become something of an arms race, with likeminded individuals now making Siri connect with all manner of things, the latest being an automobile.

Using a Viper car system, an individual was able to instruct Siri to lock and unlock the car's doors, as well as start and stop the engine. Super cool, indeed...

Microsoft: We’ve Had Siri for Over a Year!

Cody Lee ∙ November 23, 2011

Since Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S last month, everyone has been talking about one thing: Siri. The lovable assistant is the product of over 40 years of artificial intelligence research and the US CALO program (Cognitive Assistant that Learns and Organizes).

Siri isn't apparently exclusive to Apple's handset. Microsoft's chief strategy and research officer Craig Mundie recently told Forbes that Microsoft has had similar voice control tech on its Windows Phone platform for more than a year!

We know, we didn't see that one coming either...

Why Apple Bought Siri

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 6, 2016

Jon Pielak is the former lead iPhone developer for Siri, the voice technology that Apple has implemented in the iPhone 4S. Pielak helped start the Siri project back in 2008.

Some may have forgotten that Siri actually started as a popular App Store app for the iPhone. In a recent blog post, Siri's former lead developer talks about why Apple bought Siri, what makes Siri special, the what's on the horizon for the most advanced consumer voice technology on earth...

Long List of Siri Dictation Commands for Your iPhone 4S

Alex Heath ∙ October 17, 2011

The most talked about aspect of the iPhone 4S has to be Siri. Apple's newest AI technology has been making splashes in the press since its announcement two weeks ago. People are even trying to port it to the iPhone 4.

Siri can recognize and interpret tons of voice commands. We've all had fun seeing Siri's attitude in action, but did you know that the dictation aspect of Siri is incredibly advanced, too?

Chit Chatting With Siri [Video]

Jeff Benjamin ∙ October 14, 2011

I've always thought that Siri looked good, just not as great as Apple would want you to believe. I was a skeptic. I was a skeptic until about an hour ago when I first tried Siri for myself.

It's not perfect, but it's definitely better than any other voice recognition/control/A.I. you've ever used. It integrates commendably with the iPhone 4S, and best of all, it just works...most of the time.

Siri will, without a doubt, change the way we communicate with our devices going forward; it's like the missing link that we've needed all along.

Check inside and see what it's like to have small talk with Siri...

You Probably Won’t Like Siri if You Have a Thick Accent

Alex Heath ∙ October 14, 2011

Apple's new voice technology, dubbed "Siri," is really smart. It's also got an attitude.

While Siri has been receiving tons of praise from journalists and consumers alike, Apple's new AI system has one serious flaw: it doesn't understand thick accents.