Apple buys Siri voice-powered personal assistant

By Rene Ritchie
last updated

Apple's buying spree obviously didn't stop with chip wizards Intrisity -- they've snapped up voice-powered personal assistant Siri as well.

The Siri iPhone app is currently still available in the US App Store [free - iTunes link]. No guarantees on how long that will last. What makes Siri so interesting is how they integrate a number of API together, combine Nuance's voice recognition technology, and provide a way to easily input and process a number of highly useful requests. As Robert Scoble puts it, you can talk to it and have it do everything from get you a taxi buy you movie tickets.

Apple included VoiceControl for phone dialing, music playing, and general accessibility with iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3.0, but Google has raised the bar with ubiquitous OS integration starting with the Nexus One.

System-wide Siri might not just close that gap, but leapfrog it.

[FTC via Scobleizer, thanks Fassy for the tip]

Rene Ritchie
Rene Ritchie
Contributor

Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.