
Apple Reveals Siri Voice Interface: The “Intelligent Assistant” - llambda
http://techcrunch.com/2011/10/04/apple-reveals-siri-voice-interface-the-intelligent-assistant/
======
drats
This is a minor evolution on the voice capacity I have already been using on
my Android for quite some time. Because all of this relies on technology in
the cloud Google should have no problem leapfrogging this with weather,
booking of flights, news, calendar etc. Also, any future "inter-agent" stuff
will be totally broken on Apple, all of their stuff like iChat is a totally
walled garden.

For a small subset of people who are all on Apple with their friends all on
Apple in some regions of the USA it will work great though.

EDIT: For the down-voters I would just say I actually had a macbook for a few
years. iChat is technologically impressive but has near zero value when you
can't connect with people. Apple promised to make it widely inter-operative
and failed to do so when I was using it. They almost had to be forced to give
back contributions to Webkit and open it up fully. They run a closed ship more
or less in everything they do, the Apple way or the highway. This voice
feature is a thin UI on top of cloud services and interoperability, both of
which areas where Google is light-years ahead of Apple (not to mention they
have their own social network). Android is already crushing them in sales and
Apple virtually doesn't exist outside the West + Japan, tens of millions of
upper middle class Indians and Chinese will be using Android eventually. Apple
doesn't stand a chance in the long run, which is why they are already
resorting to patent suits against superior tablets like the galaxy. It's not a
BMW vs a budget car, because 1s and 0s are free the budget car has the luxury
seats and trimmings at no extra cost. They are toast.

~~~
brandonb
The really unique thing about Siri is the flexible natural language
processing. You can say "Meet with Doug for dinner today", and it'll parse out
the person/date/subject, realize you didn't specify a time, and ask you "OK,
what time would you like to meet him at?" It's just a much more forgiving
interface, which makes it more approachable for the average user.

It's actually a very hard technical problem to create software that not only
parses the user's intention, but can intelligently prompt for follow-ups.
Google has many of the individual pieces of technology, but making it all fit
together, with a good interface, is still hard work that takes time. That's
probably why it took Apple 1.5 years to go from the Siri acquisition to the
announcement today.

~~~
dave1619
I agree. I think what Apple is releasing in Siri could be bigger than most of
us realize. I have several android phones and don't use the voice recognition
much because 1 out of every 4 or 5 tries it returns things I didn't mean.
That's frustrating. The average user quits after a 20% failure rate. Siri on
the iPhone 4s needs to be at 5% or less failure rate, meaning one of every 20
requests returns an error. But then again, if it returns an error at least the
user can clarify and continue the conversation. I think Apple just leapfrogged
Google in natural language processing and taking it to the masses.

~~~
vogonj
as someone who works a lot with speech recognition: speech recognition demos
differently from how it works in the field. the demoer gets to remove all of
the semantic noise from the system (people who aren't Phil Schiller or their
wife, choosing "Greek restaurants" instead of a phrase easily confusable with
another), leaving only signal.

if it works the way it says on the box -- and remember, Apple already released
Voice Control, which has a less-than-stellar reputation -- then it could be
revolutionary. voice recognition often doesn't.

~~~
dave1619
I agree it's a big "IF". IF Siri works as advertised, then it really could be
revolutionary. I remember being pumped up by Google's demo of voice
recognition, only to try it out and find it novel and cool but not dependable
and accurate enough to use in all my real-life situations. And it's difficult
to correct errors, or clarify requests in a conversation manner like Siri.

Another reason to hope is that Siri had 19 people when Apple acquired it and
most of them are still at Apple. I would imagine that Apple scaled their team
significantly. Who knows? Maybe 100 engineers working on it, since it's a
cornerstone of the next generation of mobile devices (and probably coming to
desktop in the near future too). But Google doesn't seem to have the same
priority on natural language processing as Apple does cause more than 50% of
Apple's revenue comes from the iPhone. How many engineers at Google are
working on voice recognition and natural language processing? Maybe somebody
here will know. Maybe max 10 engineers?

Apple also will be forced to scale Siri across multiple languages very
quickly, especially if it works well. Currently they have English, French and
German. But tons of people will want it, so that motivates Apple to innovate
even more.

I guess we'll see very soon how good Siri on the iPhone 4s really is.

~~~
vogonj
it's not an apples-to-apples (heh.) comparison, because Google builds their
own speech recognition engine and Siri/Apple licenses the engine of a company
called Nuance (at least, last I checked), and so their language scaling is
limited by what Nuance can give them.

~~~
mgkimsal
You're assuming that they're not able to augment/enhance the Nuance engine
with their own improvements.

~~~
vogonj
unless Siri has undergone a lot of changes since the last time I looked at it,
there is a sharp line between speech recognition and determining user
intent/question answering; it was founded as CALO
(<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CALO>), a program which didn't even do speech
recognition.

speech recognition maps a space of waveforms onto a space of utterances in a
language. determining user intent maps that utterance onto the space of
actions.

Siri has done great things in the field of the latter; they license their
technology for doing the former from another company.

------
Kylekramer
I know that I shouldn't be surprised at this point, but making it a 4S
exclusive is one of the more blatant bits of planned obsolescence I've seen. I
was running Siri just fine on an 2nd generation iPod touch over two years ago,
and looking at the demo, it doesn't seem to be much different, just able to
hook into Apple internal APIs.

~~~
IanMikutel
I wrote a post last night (<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3069745>)
analyzing Tom Gruber, Siri's Co-Founder, CTO, and VP of Design, original Siri
keynote in 2008.

The post got pretty popular on HN and I had 5 key questions/predictions, feel
free to read all the details (and lots of quotes I transcribed straight from
Gruber's video) but now I'll summarize my thoughts quickly below:

1\. Very few languages for Siri (where's Spanish?)

2\. No API announced for developers to add tasks to Siri

3\. It's still named...Siri? What happened to Assistant? I guess it is quicker
to say in practice...

4\. Siri's in BETA? Is this the first time Apple's released a major iPhone
feature with a beta sticker?

5\. No payments integration with Siri mentioned. Can it buy stuff for me? as
Gruber talked about in 2008?

6\. No Facebook partnership for social knowledge on Siri, or even iPad app.

~~~
mercurio
I don't think Siri is in beta. I think only the 'voice dictation for arbitrary
text input' feature is in beta.

------
joebadmo
Sounds like it's an evolution over Android's voice stuff, and better
integrated. But the tech isn't what stops me from using Android's voice
commands, generally. It's that I'm not often enough in a situation to use it
without feeling embarrassed (not going to do it at work or out and about, if
I'm at home, I'm usually in front of the computer), and I usually forget about
the function. Same goes with location reminders. I have an Android app that
does them, but I never remember to actually set the reminders, because I don't
have frequent enough opportunity to use it.

The car is probably the only place I use voice commands frequently, but I
don't drive that much.

And really, aren't the bluetooth headsets a big enough scourge? Do we really
need a bunch of people walking around talking to their phones _without even
having someone on the other end_?

~~~
jeffclark
"I don't use it, so nobody will use it."

Slippery slope, man. Easy to forget there are a billion others you haven't met
yet.

~~~
drats
I imagine of the ~7 billion people alive today, perhaps 6 billion are not
potential Apple customers at all due to price. Quite a few billion are
potential low-end Android phone users though. As I said in another comment in
this thread it costs to put luxury seats into a cheap car to attempt to catch
up to a BMW, it doesn't cost to put a great many features into budget Android
phones though.

This is why Apple is starting to use patents, because they actually don't have
much when you boil it down. Even an Apple fan would be hard pressed to say
Apple is 20% "better" than the latest Android. They will mostly point to a few
UI features and say 10% better. I would say Android is easily better than iOS,
as do many others, it seems to be largely a matter of taste. The tidal-wave of
Android phones will swamp Apple in the end unless they can sue tons of people.

~~~
ceejayoz
> I imagine of the ~7 billion people alive today, perhaps 6 billion are not
> potential Apple customers at all due to price. Quite a few billion are
> potential low-end Android phone users though.

The 3GS is now free with a contract, just like the low-end Android phones.

~~~
mikeash
"Free with contract" is still a roughly $1500 commitment. For the real low
end, you need to look at what it costs for budget prepaid carriers, and in the
iPhone's case I believe that you still simply can't get one there.

~~~
Steko
Who buys a smartphone for 2 months? If you're someone who wants a smartphone
odds are even if it was off contract you'd end up paying the $1500 anyway. You
might switch carriers more often but honestly all 4 carriers give the same "I
wish it was somewhat better but I'm fine with any of them" service where I
live.

~~~
joebadmo
It's not for serial upgraders, it's for prepaid/regional carrier accounts. I
have a friend who bought a Motorola Triumph recently and pays something
$30/mo. for unlimited voice and data. There are also people who want a
smartphone with just a voice plan because they only plan on using data while
on wifi.

~~~
Steko
Virgin Mobile updated their rates this month: "$30/mo" is now "$35/mo" and
"unlimited" is now "unlimted with throttling at 2.5 GB".

It's great that small carriers are offering some great deals to lure customers
and it's great that there are some cracks in the system for the tiny minority
that doesn't want a data plan (or whatever) sbut that doesn't change the basic
truth that nearly everyone is going to be paying for phone and data every
month anyway.

These "total cost of ownership is obscene" things are always disingenuous to
me. No, that's the price of the phone and phone service and a data plan for 2
years.

~~~
joebadmo
$250 (handset) + $35/mo * 12 mo = $775. Approximately half the cost of
ownership.

I think this thread is about the cost of ownership of a "free with contact"
iPhone 3GS vs. alternatives, targeted at the low end. I think that's a
significant difference for this market. You disagree?

~~~
Steko
Are you saying this Virgin mobile plan is representative of what the average
low end Android buyer gets? And can't you get an unlocked iphone and put it on
the same sorts of plans?

I would guess the median low end Android buyer signs up with Verizon and gets
the same data plan choices they would if they have an iphone.

~~~
joebadmo
Ah, I see where our disagreement is. I agree with you that the current low-end
of Android is what you describe, and reading one node higher in the thread, I
understand what you're arguing, that the iPhone 3GS is now competing directly
with current "free with contract" Android phones. I lost track of that at some
point.

I guess to me, the way bundling works, referring to the $1500 cost of
ownership as the low-end as opposed to the $1700 cost of ownership seems
wrong. That's what the carrier's _want_ you to think, of course, that the only
choice is between this "free" phone with the expensive plan and this "high-
end" phone with the expensive plan.

But the real low-end is to get away from the expensive plan. And now that
there are Android phones that are $250 off contract that are actually quite
good, I think this true low-end becomes a viable option for a lot of people,
esp. that portion of the market that hasn't yet converted to smart phones.

Could certainly be wrong.

~~~
clarky07
You could buy one on eBay unlocked for around that much, or breaking contract
with ATT is only 325. 75 isn't much difference.

------
mikebo
This is a segway feature -- amazing technology, incredibly embarrassing to use
in public.

~~~
dman
I am sure at some point wearing headphones was incredibly embarrassing in
public.

~~~
hammock
Which point?

~~~
jdminhbg
I don't know about headphones, but using a cell phone in public was at one
point considered rude/embarrassing:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Finale_(Seinfeld)>

------
_delirium
Took 24 years to ship, but the Apple Knowledge Navigator is finally out ;-)

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGYFEI6uLy0>

------
untog
It's good. But it's not that mind-blowing- I expect Google Voice Search to
catch up pretty quickly. In the context of Android vs iPhone it's far from a
killer blow.

I'm actually more excited about the iPod Nano as a workout device.

~~~
gdhillon
Apple is doing more than just the voice search. It is parsing what the user is
saying and bringing back exact result or completing that actions. Just like
Siri did when you wanted to book a hotel or restaurant.

~~~
vogonj
this is exactly the same as voice search + "instant actions." there's no line
between the two.

~~~
roc
The "jogging guy" portion of the video shows Siri juggling context to a
surprising degree. I think there's a pretty clear line between that and voice
search + instant actions.

It's not unlike the line between what Google does and what Wolfram Alpha does.

~~~
vogonj
I interpreted the parent's comment as being about things like "great Greek
restaurant in Cupertino", which are essentially instant search.

but yeah, the reminders stuff in particular is a cool new realm for voice
control.

------
oflannabhra
I have a handicapped friend, and we have been trying to get a good smartphone
solution working for him. He's currently got an HTC EVO, and as many people
have said, Android's voice capabilities are pretty amazing (although Android
has a separate called "Voice Dialer" which is absolutely terrible for some
reason). One problem he's had, however is touchscreen confirmation. Siri looks
like it will fix a lot of problems, and allow him much more freedom.

Also, I'd like to give a shoutout to the folks developing Tecla (
<http://scyp.idrc.ocad.ca/projects/tekla> ) for Android. It's an open source
wheelchair integration for Android that uses the Arduino to interface with
whatever controls the user currently has. I found it in my search for a
solution, but my friend wanted to hold off until he gets a new chair.
Regardless, Tekla is easily the coolest mobile open source project I've
discovered, and I just wanted to give those guys credit. The project page is
<https://launchpad.net/meadl>

~~~
macrael
Do look at what iOS provides for accessibility.
<http://www.apple.com/accessibility/iphone/physical.html> There are already a
lot of built in features (which Siri no doubt augments greatly) for people
with disabilities.

~~~
oflannabhra
While iOS 4 provides great accessibility features, it mostly excels in
providing support for visually impaired users. As a touch interface, it has
certain mobility requirements that Jimmy didn't like. He would have had to
mount the phone inches from his face (where he keeps his non driving hand).
Siri seems to greatly decrease those mobility requirements, and he is excited.

------
mrbill
The "Siri" app on the App Store does a lot of this already (Apple bought the
company and integrated the product) for current phones running iOS 4. It's
really impressive.

~~~
Gormo
It's been removed from the App Store.

~~~
mrbill
Wow, that was quick. I installed it this AM.

~~~
richbradshaw
Try it now, servers are shutdown.

Site was up at start of 4S intro, down by the time I'd clicked download,
redirected to apple.com as soon as I refreshed!

------
hsuresh
I should probably register a site: siribloopers.com. Am sure we are gonna hear
lots of stories about misadventures with Siri :)

~~~
judofyr
Someone just registered damnyousiri.com:
<http://twitter.com/cjno/status/121293035739955201>

~~~
Urgo
I got a better name. Are You Sirious? areyousirious.com I thought about
registering it but didn't. Feel free to if someone here wants it. If it
becomes big you're welcome, remember me :)

~~~
mattberg
dang it actually let me buy it but just got a failed registration notice.
shouldn't have used a coupon code :)

~~~
shoota
Same here my frugality got the best of me this time.

------
togasystems
Wow. Now I might get a lot of naysayers here, but how long do you think before
the keyboard becomes a niche product much like how the pen and pencil are
becoming? Natural Language is a field that is going to explode.

~~~
ChuckMcM
See the comment above by Joe. There is a certain 'weirdness' about giving
voice commands to a device in public, it feels so strange that people don't do
it, and being forced to radically alter their speech tempo/patterns makes it
even more uncomfortable for them.

That being said, one 'fix' here is to call your virtual assistant and talk to
them on the phone. We do that now with these irritating voice mail type menu
trees but at least you are talking to 'someone.' When we get to 'Ironman'
level of interactivity it gets more compelling.

~~~
Florin_Andrei
I'm not trying to be funny, but there's nothing weird about characters in Star
Trek speaking to the ship's computer.

"Computer, make me a coffee." See? It's okay.

~~~
ChuckMcM
So at Google they stuffed people 4 to a cube. Lots of people have open floor
plans. Most people turn off their speakers (and miss meetings because of it)
because the noise is distracting. Imagine them all saying 'computer, start the
debugger on that core file.'

Like you I have seen a lot of Star Trek, it took a world class UX designer to
point out to me that every time someone gave voice commands to the computer
everyone else in the area had to be silent. There was even a little cultural
thing going on, the captain says "Computer" in a loud voice, every one shuts
up, and then he gives it some command. I did not pick up that insight on my
own, it was pointed out to me and now when I see it in action I chuckle.

------
chintan
There is an inherent friction in using any Software or a Gadget. A piece of
technology or service that removes/reduces this friction is going to win BIG!

Some successful examples:

1\. DropBox

2\. Swipely

3\. Kayak

4\. Instapaper

5\. GPS Voice navigation

6\. Multi-touch interfaces

....

I believe Siri belongs to same the class of technologies..

HCI has still not reached 1.0

~~~
vailripper
This essentially exists already with Google voice search. It isn't exactly
game changing.

~~~
ugh
Execution. Execution. Execution.

iDisk offered essentially what Dropbox offers. iDisk sucked, Dropbox doesn’t.

I’m not saying the execution is great (I simply cannot know that at this point
in time), I’m saying that execution is extremely important when it comes to
whether something is game changing or not.

------
fatbat
Has it been mentioned if Siri would be open for Devs?

If not are there alternatives to Siri that app developers can use that behaves
the same but open for hacking?

------
kno
I foresee a new Jargon now in people communication just "tell Siri " if you
need anything; Great job Apple as always.

------
lordmatty
I can see this starting to take over simple tasks. Love the idea of being able
to dictate a reminder, or ask the phone to wake me up at 6AM (7AM?!).

How much quicker is it ask those questions, rather than navigate to the App,
input the info? Lots!

------
brvsirrbn
Think about the value of the aggregated data that comes when everyone (in
every country) chooses to use Siri (in the US) as a primary input device.
Privacy concerns, anyone?

------
ryanwhitney
Surprised that "but the specs are close to ____" arguments are still found
around here.

Let's compare the iPhone 4's 5MP camera to the "8MP!!!" Androids.

~~~
nextparadigms
Galaxy S II 8 MP camera is better than the iPhone 4 for one.

------
tomlin
Siri was only for US when it launched, and the screen shots of the current
implementation don't look any more favorable.

------
shoota
Not terribly impressive. I wonder how realtime usage will be since all data
processing is done in the "cloud".

~~~
cryptoz
Android's voice search also does things in the cloud. It's not bad, actually.
I can say, "Email Alex. Subject Hello. Body Hi Alex, how are you [question
mark]" and my Xoom will open the gmail app and fill out all the fields in
about 3 or 4 seconds.

I imagine Apple will be approximately the same.

~~~
ceejayoz
I'd imagine they down-sample the audio like crazy. They certainly don't need
CD quality sound for it.

~~~
vogonj
the standard is 8kHz-16kHz, 8-bit PCM. higher frequencies are of limited
utility in recognizing human speech.

------
heyrhett
It's like Ask Jeeves, but for my phone in the cloud!!!!

------
abuzzooz
To me it felt like Apple were clinging to straws by touting Siri as a
"feature" of iPhone 4S. What was more interesting to me are the thoughts that
came to my head. My first thought was of Clippy. My second one was of the
McCain/Palin campaign insisting that Alaska's proximity to Russia gives Palin
international politics experience. My third thought was that Apple must be
smarter than this, or are they?

