Apple says Siri will no longer retain audio by default, one-upping Amazon and Google on privacy Siri won’t be so sneaky about snooping anymore. That’s the gist of a new policy announcement and accompanying apology from… Read More
Dimmest bulb on ‘Jeopardy’ is Alexa as Amazon’s A.I. is tasked with turning down the stage lights Alex and Alexa — it’s a match made in geek heaven. Amazon’s recent sponsorship of the popular television quiz show… Read More
Amazon introduces Alexa speed controls, letting users determine how quickly voice assistant talks If only we could do this with certain people in our lives! Alexa will speak up to two times slower… Read More
Earmuffs, Alexa! Amazon to let users opt out of human review of voice recordings, amid scrutiny Amazon became the latest tech giant to let users of its voice assistant opt out of human review of their… Read More
Amazon R&D and infrastructure spending spikes as tech giant staffs up on technical talent Amazon is spending more cash to hire top technical workers in key growth areas as the Seattle company competes for… Read More
Amazon’s newest Alexa accelerator cohort shows how voice apps and business models are maturing Amazon’s Alexa Accelerator is up and running for the third consecutive year as another batch of early stage startups test… Read More
Amazon reportedly working on high-end Echo smart speaker, Alexa-powered home robot Amazon’s hardware R&D teams are keeping busy, as the tech giant is reportedly working on a pair of intriguing new… Read More
UK’s National Health Service taps Amazon’s Alexa to field common medical questions The UK’s National Health Service is making Alexa available to millions of patients in another sign that voice technology is… Read More
Saykara upgrades voice assistant for doctors with independent note-taking skill Seattle-based digital health startup Saykara wants to free clinicians from the mountains of paperwork that await them at the end… Read More
Podcast Can virtual assistants make healthcare more human? Startups create voice tech for doctors and patients Peek into a random hospital room in the U.S. today, and you might see something that makes you cynical about… Read More
Hey Siri, meet Alexa: Rival AI assistants become neighbors as Apple doubles down on Seattle For years, fixtures in the Bay Area tech industry have been migrating to Seattle in search of comparable jobs with… Read More
I worked out with basketball legend Sue Bird via a new Amazon Alexa skill — here’s what it was like I pretty much rely on Amazon’s Alexa to tell me the weather for the day, read some headlines and play… Read More
Can Alexa help detect a heart attack? Researchers explore life-saving potential of smart speakers At the onset of a heart attack, people often have a few telltale symptoms: pain in the chest or arm,… Read More
Amazon lets developers build premium Alexa content for kids with new in-skill purchasing feature Amazon will let developers build premium Alexa content directed at kids with an expansion of its in-skill purchasing feature. The… Read More
Does Alexa illegally record children? Amazon sued for allegedly storing conversations without consent Amazon’s Alexa is the target of a pair of lawsuits that allege the voice assistant violates laws in nine states… Read More
Alexa gets smarter about combining AI skills, starting with dinner and a movie LAS VEGAS — Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant will soon get savvier about juggling its thousands of skills — starting with… Read More
New Amazon feature lets users tell Alexa to delete recent voice recordings and commands Amazon is stepping up its privacy options for its voice assistant and digital brain Alexa, as tech giants look to… Read More
Podcast Paging Dr. Alexa: Hospitals call on voice assistants, envisioning ‘massive’ impact on healthcare Voice assistants are coming to the hospital. Last month, Amazon Alexa announced a new skill that made the platform compliant… Read More
Amazon is reportedly building a wellness device that senses emotions in your voice Amazon is reportedly working on a health and wellness device that is worn on the wrist and can read human… Read More
Amazon says millions of custom Alexa voice apps have come out of no-code Skill Blueprints program Amazon has counted on others to spread Alexa everywhere — first developers, then device makers, and most recently everyone else.… Read More
Will AirPods spark the next technology wave? How ‘personal audio computing’ could reshape the industry Phone, keys, wallet. Oh, and AirPods. It’s happened to me, and I bet it’s happened to you too. The trio… Read More
Should Apple join Amazon’s healthcare venture? Analysts make the case for collaboration between tech giants As big tech companies vie for a slice of the $3.5 trillion spent by Americans on healthcare each year, analysts… Read More
Alexa, certify me: Amazon Web Services launching training program for Alexa skill builders Amazon Web Services plans to launch a certification program Tuesday that will give developers building so-called “skills” for its Echo… Read More
Jeff Bezos uses annual Amazon letter as antitrust antidote: ‘Third-party sellers are kicking our first party butt. Badly.’ Amazon is getting trounced by third-party sellers on its platform, has weathered some spectacular failures in the process of building… Read More
Amazon adds HIPAA compliance to Alexa Skills, opening door for secure health apps Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant has a new trick: transmitting secure patient information between patients and caregivers. Developers can now use… Read More
This new health bot aims to spur behavioral change by using human-like compassion Tuzag is betting that health bots need a better bedside manner. The startup just launched a chat service that’s part… Read More
Amazon invests in Seattle startup Jargon, a voice application content platform for developers Voice technology continues to proliferate. There are more than 66 million smart speaker units in the U.S., up from 36… Read More
Worth seeing? We get fitted for Alexa-enabled smart glasses in a mobile showroom in Seattle A block from Amazon’s signature Spheres in Seattle, a small trailer was parked Monday in a lot that will soon… Read More
Amazon maintains big lead in smart speaker market over Google and Apple, new survey estimates There’s been some buzz about Google’s smart speakers catching up to Amazon’s market-leading offerings in recent months, but a new… Read More
Super Bowl ad recap: Bezos pushes Post message; T-Mobile offers freebies; Xbox and Alexa score big Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos didn’t show up in his company’s latest Super Bowl ad for Alexa. But his message was… Read More
