Apple’s latest acquisition should help Siri to understand you better

AI-driven natural language recognition

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Applejust acquired a company that specializes in processing natural language requests – and that should mean holding a conversation with the Siri assistant is going to get a lot easier in the future.

The artificial intelligence startup is called Voysis,Bloomberg reports, and it was based in Dublin, Ireland. The outfit had been going since 2012 but will now be part of Apple.

Apple itself didn’t have much to say about the deal, delivering the standard response to Bloomberg: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”

It’snot uncommonfor Apple to pick up and absorb smaller tech firms – in November 2018 itgot holdof a firm that worked on AI for smart home devices. In this case, it should have a direct impact on the apps that iPhone and Mac owners are using every day.

Okay Siri…

Voysis focused specifically on digital assistants inside shopping apps, so they could better respond to requests like “I need a new LED TV” and “my budget is $1,000”, for example. That tech was then sold on to other companies.

Once Apple incorporates the AI processing into its own programs – with Siri presumably high on that list – you should be able to make requests and ask questions that are much more vague.

WithGoogleAssistant andAmazonAlexa continuing to improve and offer fierce competition for Siri, Apple knows that it can’t let its digital assistant get left behind. We might see some of these improvements in time forthe HomePod 2.

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It’s actually Apple’s second acquisition in the space of a week: it alsopicked uppopular weather app Dark Sky and promptly announced it would be shutting down the Android version of it.

ViaEngadget

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you’ll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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