“Hey, Google” & “Alexa”, how often nowadays do we come across these terms? The ever-evolving field of technology has now shifted its focus to smart audio. This is expected to boom over the coming years as millions of users across the globe are inculcating this tech into their day to day chores. From streaming online music to setting reminders, virtual assistants these days can help one solve any problem just by issuing a few verbal commands. With all the smart devices having voice-enabled controls the one device that stands in the center of all is the “Smart Speaker”.

According to a survey, It is expected by the year 2023, nearly 500 million people across the globe would have a smart speaker in their respective homes.

So let’s understand what exactly is a smart speaker, how does it actually work?

Ever wondered what it takes to make a normal speaker into a smart speaker? A smart speaker is much like a normal speaker except it has a microphone with a little computer inside that is basically an audio chipset powered with voice assistants such as Google Assistant, Amazon’s Alexa, Microsoft’s Cortana, or any other third party voice assistant (using AI technique). It listens to your question, feeds it through the system, and responds back with the answer. The smart speaker simply wakes up by any voice command preceded by the respective name of that voice assistant. They are always connected to the wi-fi and are always on, waiting for your next command to execute.

 AI adaptability in the Smart speaker 

Today Smart speakers rely on complex algorithms like Natural Language Processing(NLP) & Natural Language Generation(NLG) to provide the user with the optimum results. These algorithms are able to map the user query, send it to the server, and provide a befitting response for the same. Artificial intelligence (AI) enabled tech is more accurate as it relies on the past result from the user, for eg. If a person is interested in a particular genre of music he/she would get optimized results for the phrase related to music. The AI capabilities to customize the results as per the user’s requirements is a much-needed feature in this dynamic environment which makes this product much more desirable.

What can a smart speaker do for you?

The smart speakers allow controlling just about any aspect of your digital life, including : 

It can help you in your everyday tasks, to personalize your morning routine, check weather updates, set reminders, set alarms, and a whole lot more. You can ask any question to the speaker and it responds back with the answer based on a Google search.

Just ask the speaker to play the latest news and the speaker will play it for you. Imagine how easy it is saving both your time and efforts to search.

You can listen to your favorite music across a number of music streaming services including  Google play music, Youtube music, Gaana, Spotify,  etc.  Apart from this, smart home devices such as smart bulbs, smart plugs, smart TV, smart lighting, door locks, etc can be controlled via your voice commands and can be executed seamlessly thus making day-to-day tasks easy.

Other than these, Smart speakers can also be used to create a shopping list and order items online to be delivered at your doorstep.

Can smart speakers pose any security threats or invade your privacy?

Now the real question, if there are any security or privacy concerns a smart speaker can pose as they are always listening to your commands. There were many controversies in the past where users were concerned about their privacy and data sharing. It is to be noted that the recordings are only sent to the server once the speaker is woken up and that too over an encrypted connection.

Apart from backend, there are also many other ways to make your interaction with smart speakers more secure such as : 

  • Deleting  the command history of past recordings 
  • Muting the microphone
  • Personalized unique voice to prevent any unwanted user to use it.
  • Disabling personal results from showing up.

Conclusion : 

There are several factors while looking for a great smart speaker such as it’s audio quality, good microphone, mic-mute option, easy to set up. etc. Looking at the way, smart speakers have completely revolutionized the IoT world and I would say smart speakers are just the “right device at the right place at the right time”.

How can VVDN help OEM’s? 

VVDN leverages its vast expertise in smart audio, with dedicated audio labs and design centers, along with experienced professionals and engineers, have developed many voice-enabled AI-based smart audio products including soundbars, audio-video conferencing solutions, smart speakers, neckbands, and many more. VVDN has developed one low-cost Smart GVA speaker for OEM’s. 

To request a demo click here or write to us at: info@vvdntech.com

Vikram Vig

Author

Vikram Vig

Assistant Manager - Technical Marketing