Everyone wants to have their own voice-powered virtual assistant. Apple has Siri. Google has Google Now. And Windows Phone 8.1 is expected to include Microsoft’s Cortana voice assistant. Now Yahoo is working on its own voice assistant since they don’t want to be left out.
Check out this video that seems to show a Yahoo voice assistant floating over other apps on what looks like a Nexus 4. The assistant doesn’t show off too much here, but we can gather some interesting information. It knows that the user is in a car when the car is being started. This is probably done based on the time and a calendar appointment, not because it hears the car’s engine.
Yahoo! Voice Assistant by lamIaml
The assistant knows that the person is on his way to work and offers a warning about traffic. It offers an option for sending a text message via voice command and dictation and you can also edit a message. Impressed yet?
You can also use it for local business searches. This isn’t in the video, but there is a screencap that shows a search for “romantic French spot for tonight” that yields a result of a restaurant. Check out the video.
