Google Assistant is expected to hit iOS and washing machines
Google’s voice-controlled Assistant has only been available on Android and Home so far, but it might just spread its wings in the very near future. To start, Bloomberg tipsters claim that Google will use its I/O developer conference to launch Assistant on iOS as a free app. It wouldn’t have the deep integration that comes with Android, but you could use it to access content available in YouTube and other Google apps. The app would only be available in the US at first, but you might not mind so much when the same sources also hint that Assistant will also provide a boost to Google Photos and appliances.
Reportedly, Photos will use Assistant to help you create coffee table books from your image library. This will seem familiar to the Mac crowd (Apple offered iPhoto books for years), but the AI would help out by automatically including relevant images. You wouldn’t have to hand-pick snapshots if you didn’t want to. At least one book option would cost $10.
There’s also talk of Assistant reaching GE’s home appliances. You could ask your oven to heat up, for example, or check on the laundry. Details of the integration aren’t clear (can you talk directly to a device, or do you need your phone?), but it’s likely that you’ll only see this in new or very recent equipment. The one certainty: just like Amazon and Samsung, Google is determined to give its AI helper a foothold in your smart home.
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