Alexa

Google pushed a chart with side-by-side comparison of Gemini Ultra’s and GPT-4's performance on a number of tests. In almost every category, Google is on top.Graphic: GoogleGoogle is generally reserved when it takes shots at competitors, but the company didn’t mince words. According to Google, Gemini has OpenAI beat on almost every measure. “With a score of over 90%, Gemini is the first A.I. model to outperform human experts on the industry standard benchmark MMLU,” said Eli Collins, Vice President of Product at Google…

Amazon.com Inc. must pledge to fairly rank rival robot vacuum cleaners sold on its online marketplace if it is to secure European Union approval for its $1.4 billion buyout of Roomba maker iRobot Corp., the bloc's interim competition chief Didier Reynders warned. His comments follow last week's move by the European Commission to issue a formal statement of objections cataloging potential reasons to block the deal unless Amazon comes up with an offer to fix them.  “The main issue is to be sure to have a fair treatment of…

Amazon is finally rolling out its long-awaited Alexa app update for iOS and Android devices. While some tweaks have been made to the app since the summer, the latest update enhances the app’s functionality to a whole new level. Controlling smart home devices is more straightforward via the app now, and users would find it much easier to work with it. Amazon’s director of smart home, Charlie French, says their primary focus for revamping Alexa apps was to put smart home controls front and center. “We’ve seen great…

Amazon/ZDNETAnyone who uses Amazon's Alexa app to manage their Smart Home devices may appreciate the latest changes to the app. The newest update offers more convenient access to your Echo devices and all your smart plugs, lights, cameras, thermostats, and other gadgets. In a news briefTo start, the Home screen displays a new Shortcuts bar with icons for your smart home devices and Alexa-created tasks such as shopping lists and routines. On the bar, you can see the status of your devices and turn each one on or off…

As much as Apple's HomeKit system has improved in recent years and the addition of support for the Matter standard has grown the list of compatible accessories, a lot of people still rely on Amazon's Alexa. The smart digital assistant has long been the go-to system for managing smart home accessories for a ton of iPhone owners, thanks in part to dirt-cheap Echo smart speakers. Now, those who have had to endure the Alexa app on those iPhones have some new features to enjoy.Those new features are the latest in a line of…

In the war of AI-powered digital voice assistants, Google Assistant and Siri are on the top, while Alexa, Bixby, and Cortana haven't received much attention. And that is largely due to Apple and Google having already established smartphone platforms of their own. While Cortana is being shut down, Alexa is moving in a different direction. Amazon is now focusing more on smart home devices rather than Alexa's ability to fetch answers from the internet. Amazon has now released a massively redesigned Alexa app for Android and…

Several companies have taken shots at Sonos over the years when it comes to multi-room audio and self-tuning speakers with built-in voice assistants. These devices are a lot more common in 2023 than they used to be, so there’s a whole host of options if you’re looking for alternatives to the Move or Era. JBL is the latest to give it a go with new additions to its . While audio may be its primary use, these devices are the first to run two voice assistants simultaneously without having to switch from one to the other. And…

EU's competition watchdog had warned Amazon that the deal may reduce competition in robot vacuum cleaners (File/Reuters)After witnessing hiccups, Amazon may finally get Europe’s nod for its $1.7 billion acquisition of robot vacuum cleaner maker iRobot. The antitrust regulator in the UK has already given a green light to the deal. Citing three people familiar with the matter, news agency Reuters reported that Amazon is set to win unconditional approval for acquisition by the European Commission. The Commission, which acts…

OpenAI’s former President and Chairman Greg Brockman announced that ChatGPT Voice is now available to all users Tuesday afternoon. Users can now speak with ChatGPT, and it will talk back, announced Brockman on X, just days after OpenAI’s leadership was ousted. Why is Everyone Suing AI Companies? | Future Tech“ChatGPT Voice rolled out for all free users. Give it a try — totally changes the ChatGPT experience,” said Brockman on X.It’s chaotic times at OpenAI, and the state of its leadership seems to change every few hours.…

Amazon is sacking employees in its Alexa division even as it prepares to upgrade Alexa to be as smart as modern AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT. The move will impact several hundred employees in the US, Canada, and India, according to an internal email sent on Friday.“As we continue to invent, we’re shifting some of our efforts to better align with our business priorities, and what we know matters most to customers — which includes maximizing our resources and efforts focused on generative AI,” wrote Daniel Bausch,…