09-26-2021
2 min read
Dasha Fomin
Weekly Digest: More Celebrities Embrace Voice Tech
Amazon releases limited-edition Echo Studio Speaker in collaboration with Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish teamed up with Amazon for a custom version of their Echo Studio, featuring the album artwork from Eilish’s latest release, Happier Than Ever, over Amazon’s popular smart speakers. The smart speaker enables users to ask Alexa to play their favorite Eilish album, or set Eilish-inspired wakeup calls, alerts and alarms. Via Rolling Stone.
Reese Witherspoon’s book club partners with Google Assistant
Google announced a partnership to bring the book club founded by actor Reese Witherspoon to Google Assistant-enabled speakers, smart displays and mobile devices. Comeing to English-speaking countries around the world, the club will enable Google users to access monthly book picks, quizzes for personalized reading recommendations and commentary about each selection from Witherspoon. Via CNET.
GM’s OnStar is now available on Amazon’s Alexa in homes
GM and Amazon announced an extension of GM’s OnStar Guardian emergency services to Amazon’s Alex devices in homes. According to GM, this will enable household members to reach OnStar emergency-certified advisers by saying, ‘Alexa, call for help,’ during crisis situations. Via The Street.
Spotify turns to ReadSpeaker for in-car voice AI
An automotive audio player, the Spotify Car Thing device interacts with drivers using the text-to-speech (TTS) tech developed by digital voice interface creator ReadSpeaker. Drivers can mount the Car Thing on their vent or dashboard and turn on their music and other audio content by asking Spotify’s voice assistant or manipulating the device’s touchpad and joystick. Via Voicebot.ai.