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emiaj

macrumors 6502
Aug 21, 2015
257
757
Madrid, Spain
One thing that’s missing from I/O 18 was the mentioning of “privacy”.
Well, it’s Google, maybe we’ll never hear from them about privacy, just like we would probably never see Siri being more inteligent than Google Assistant. Everything is a trade off after all. We’re giving up our data to companies like Google, they make a more inteligent assistant, maybe one day there’s just no where for us to hide anymore. It’s kinda scary how the assistant making phone calls without human involved... imagine one day your AI does a crime under your name...
 

sracer

macrumors G4
Apr 9, 2010
10,271
12,994
where hip is spoken
I concur with this statement...I really hope Apple doesn’t pull the privacy/Security BS card at WWDC for the reason why Siri will continue to suck behind Amazon and Google
They most likely will ignore the whole thing completely and won't acknowledge that there's a functionality gap between Siri and Google Assistant.

Perhaps the greatest reason why Apple hasn't taken Siri to the level of Google Assistant is that... they don't have to. All of the complaints about Siri falling behind in this thread will die down by happy hour today. Life moves on, and everyone will continue to upgrade their iPhones with newer ones.

The deficiencies of Siri didn't even slow down the sale of the product that relies most on it... HomePod.

Apple strategically spends its money in areas that count.... hardware and marketing.
 

Bswails

macrumors regular
Jul 28, 2016
185
167
Sigh.... I really want to believe in you Siri but you are leaving so much to be desired. The HomePod hardware is amazing, and Siri works alright - but every time Google and Amazon show off updates like this it makes me wonder why I am in the Apple ecosystem. I may have to pick up a Google Home to set next to my HomePod...


I SO don’t want to have multiple voice assistants in my home..but I share in your thoughts. I don’t want it to be so but I honestly do not see Apple doing anything remotely on par this year..I may be selling my HomePods for Sonos(I would prefer to say Alexa over google lol)
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They most likely will ignore the whole thing completely and won't acknowledge that there's a functionality gap between Siri and Google Assistant.

Perhaps the greatest reason why Apple hasn't taken Siri to the level of Google Assistant is that... they don't have to. All of the complaints about Siri falling behind in this thread will die down by happy hour today. Life moves on, and everyone will continue to upgrade their iPhones with newer ones.

The deficiencies of Siri didn't even slow down the sale of the product that relies most on it... HomePod.

Apple strategically spends its money in areas that count.... hardware and marketing.

So true. In the grand scheme of things I know I’m not even a speck for Apple but this maybe the last year I own Apple products for a while...#Woke lol
 
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fel10

macrumors 68020
Feb 2, 2010
2,235
3,206
Woodstock, GA USA
Yes they good use those 100 billions better for improving Siri, maps, iWork, FCPX, iOS, MacOS, macmini, imac, MacPro, MacBook Air, MacBook, MacBook Pro, AppleTV, HomePod, iPad and iPhones. And all their software and services.

:eek: It just reminds me that the whole range is in desperate need of a refresh. Why take only care for the shareholders when the ones who make it possible are getting milked and being neclected.

I definitely need to write something good about Apple but can’t honestly find anything anymore.

This company has definitely lost its soul and are only profit focused and driven. :(

Nonsense, they have to use that money for emojis
 

jclo

Managing Editor
Staff member
Dec 7, 2012
1,969
4,300
As someone who absolutely hates making phone calls, the Google Duplex thing is super appealing. I'd love for a virtual assistant to be able to make phone calls in my stead so I don't have to, though it's probably going to be pretty limited in scope to things like appointments + reservations. A lot of the time these can be done online anyway.

An immediate concern of mine is what data does Google need and collect to do things like this? While Siri sucks, I know Siri isn't gathering oodles of information about me to share with advertising partners and what not.

Also, the bit about teaching kids to say please and thank you through a virtual assistant is super creepy to me. It's weird to insist on politeness to the AI.
 

red41

macrumors regular
Aug 11, 2006
175
87
That is really impressive but I can't remember the last time I didn't book an appointment online through an app.
 
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AppleMad98004

macrumors 6502a
Aug 23, 2011
617
846
Cylde Hill, WA
Wow. Those demonstration calls were incredibly impressive. Apple feels so stagnant and uninspired these days, especially after seeing what Google has managed to accomplish here. The scary thing is, I don’t think Apple even realizes, much less cares, how far they are falling behind. For now they continue to rake in the dough with higher prices on iPhone, dropping features (ie: all ports from the MacBook) while maintaining price point, and nickel and diming users with services. Meanwhile Google is doing some pretty amazing and inspired work.

Microsoft is also getting very innovative. The only thing Apple has going for them with me (at the moment) is the integration of the phone/tablet/MacBook. This keeps me with Apple but if innovation on the desktop and back-end doesn't improve I may abandon Apple on my next upgrade cycle.

Jobs would be on a rampage right now.
 
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dazzer21-2

macrumors 6502
Dec 3, 2005
448
506
*Maybe* once the novelty wears off once they've become a trillion dollar company, we might see some of this famed innovation we're (previously, way back when) so used to. They're not interested in spending anything at the moment until they get there...
 

mi7chy

macrumors G4
Oct 24, 2014
10,495
11,155
Google Duplex feature that calls in appointments makes sense for the caller but I'm surprised nothing mentioned for the business end especially for small businesses that get overwhelmed with calls and don't have a call center or even an IVR. Perhaps they're purposely avoiding having AI taking away jobs.
 

bodonnell202

macrumors 68020
Jan 5, 2016
2,455
3,200
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
I am surprised to hear people would seriously consider switching platforms due to Google's assistant potentially being better than Siri. Personally, voice assistants are a current fad that will fade over time. I see people eventually wanting less and less interaction with technology and automation becoming much more useful. I am sure Google has some advantages here also, but certainly no reason to switch platforms. Once Apple isn't the best overall option when it comes to performance, security, privacy, apps, ecosystem, and support, I'll consider switching. Voice assistants? Come on.
I think the point is that Apple is really lagging on the AI front while others are doing really great things with AI. The automation comes along with it. If it get's to the point where I can ask google assistant to book an appointment and it calls and does it for me and then puts it in my calendar with a reminder, while asking Siri to do the same results in a calendar entry and that's it, you bet I'll be thinking about making the switch.
 

DNichter

macrumors G3
Apr 27, 2015
9,385
11,183
Philadelphia, PA
I think the point is that Apple is really lagging on the AI front while others are doing really great things with AI. The automation comes along with it. If it get's to the point where I can ask google assistant to book an appointment and it calls and does it for me and then puts it in my calendar with a reminder, while asking Siri to do the same results in a calendar entry and that's it, you bet I'll be thinking about making the switch.

That's fair, all comes down to the individual, but it's just not reason enough (not even close) for me to switch platforms. Also, you can do this today with Siri and OpenTable. I think you may just need to press a button to confirm. Obviously, not exactly the same, but I just don't see what Google is doing here as some crazy advancement.
 
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fairuz

macrumors 68020
Aug 27, 2017
2,486
2,589
Silicon Valley
You’re lying to yourself. While it’s calling someone and talking to them for you, you can be doing something else. It’ll just add the appointment to your calendar when it’s done.

That’s time and effort saved.
It takes like 30 seconds to call them. What could I be doing on my phone that's so important? Not that I ever call places to make reservations in the first place. Also, I still wouldn't trust it enough to get the reservation right. They might ask questions it won't know how to handle, and I don't want to be that jerk making robo-calls that keep asking the other person to repeat.

Anyway, I was talking more about the assistant's natural language for when you're talking to it. You don't need to talk to your phone. Siri is lame, but it also does everything it needs to do.
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If you say automation is the future can you confidently say that Apple is going to lead in automation? Because their history in AI in the past few years leaves a lot to be desired compared to googles. Google is going all in on AI and automation
Apple leads in security/privacy and reliability. Those are the most important things when you add in "IoT" stuff.
 
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twistedpixel8

macrumors 6502a
Jun 9, 2017
868
1,872
I’m confused... a couple of weeks ago I realized Google Home could do several things in the same command (“turn off the hallway light and dim the bedroom light to 30%”) and she did it fine. Or is it that you can ask one thing and then after she completes it, you can refer to “it” again without specifying the name? Like “brighten it to 70%”?
 

Heat_Fan89

macrumors 68030
Feb 23, 2016
2,537
3,233
Get used to it folks AI is the wave of the future even though Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking have grave concerns regarding AI and Robotic AI. A few years ago Glenn Beck did an interview with several of the founders of Google and he said the ultimate plan is to have Robotic AI that is humanlike and knows more about you than your mate. The race is on between all the tech giants: Google, Microsoft, Raytheon, Boston Dynamics all in the quest for "Super AI".

Here's a piece Glenn Beck did on the final goal for AI. So what we're seeing with all these Alexa/Google Assistants is a precursor to where Robotic AI will take us.

https://www.glennbeck.com/2018/01/1...artificial-intelligence-could-end-human-life/
 

ersan191

macrumors 68000
Oct 26, 2013
1,710
3,966
That phone call demo would never work in real life...
 
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69Mustang

macrumors 604
Jan 7, 2014
7,895
15,043
In between a rock and a hard place
An immediate concern of mine is what data does Google need and collect to do things like this? While Siri sucks, I know Siri isn't gathering oodles of information about me to share with advertising partners and what not.
Confused and curious. Is this an implication that Google gathers oodles of information about consumers to share with advertising partners and what not? I'm asking because I don't want to misconstrue what you're saying.

On topic: This is some seriously impressive customer facing tech.
 

fatalogic

macrumors 6502
Aug 16, 2016
251
244
Get used to it folks AI is the wave of the future even though Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking have grave concerns regarding AI and Robotic AI. A few years ago Glenn Beck did an interview with several of the founders of Google and he said the ultimate plan is to have Robotic AI that is humanlike and knows more about you than your mate. The race is on between all the tech giants: Google, Microsoft, Raytheon, Boston Dynamics all in the quest for "Super AI".

Here's a piece Glenn Beck did on the final goal for AI. So what we're seeing with all these Alexa/Google Assistants is a precursor to where Robotic AI will take us.

https://www.glennbeck.com/2018/01/1...artificial-intelligence-could-end-human-life/
Google has always been an AI company search was just a piece of the pie. They are playing the very long game. I used to be pretty heavy in the android ecosystem but they really don't put the effort in that arena like Apple does and it shows.
 

bodonnell202

macrumors 68020
Jan 5, 2016
2,455
3,200
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Apple leads in security/privacy and reliability. Those are the most important things when you add in "IoT" stuff.

Reliability? Apple definitely doesn't lead in reliability anymore. They used to, but based on their performance of late I'd say they are bringing up the rear among their major competitors on reliability...

As far as security and privacy goes am I the only one that thinks a lot of people are way more worried about this than they need to be? I mean, if someone really wants to get into my phone they can have all my photos of my dog... and yes I know Google tracks my browsing patterns so they can put up ads that may be more relevant to me, but I honestly couldn't care less.
 
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elppa

macrumors 68040
Nov 26, 2003
3,233
151
Goggle assistance, like Siri, is looking obsolete. Amazon and now, Amazon/Microsoft are looking very strong. With a lot of tie ins to computers, speakers and home control of TV, heating, cooling, security, voice ordering, etc. from anywhere in the world.

Problem is neither Microsoft nor Amazon have a mobile platforms.
Both have tried and failed.
 
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Tech198

Cancelled
Mar 21, 2011
15,915
2,151
"parents will have the option of turning on a "Pretty Please" feature that's designed to teach children manners by offering positive reinforcement for polite conversations that include please and thank you."

haha.. if there is one thing this will teach kids is how NOT to swear :D
 

MacBH928

macrumors G3
May 17, 2008
8,275
3,696
I don't care if Google can turn sand into gold... Google is becoming too powerful and knows too much for the good of society. I didn't believe in droids in sci-fi films but if they can make a computer call a hotel and book an appointement... Its too creepy for me.
 

fairuz

macrumors 68020
Aug 27, 2017
2,486
2,589
Silicon Valley
Reliability? Apple definitely doesn't lead in reliability anymore. They used to, but based on their performance of late I'd say they are bringing up the rear among their major competitors on reliability...

As far as security and privacy goes am I the only one that thinks a lot of people are way more worried about this than they need to be? I mean, if someone really wants to get into my phone they can have all my photos of my dog... and yes I know Google tracks my browsing patterns so they can put up ads that may be more relevant to me, but I honestly couldn't care less.
Hackers steal people's money, identity, etc and run DDoS attacks through victims' phones, always Android. It'll be a lot worse if they can get ahold of home control devices. Best case scenario, they only use it for DDoS. Russian hackers have been breaking into all kinds of US infrastructure lately, and we don't need to make more targets for them.

I wouldn't call iOS very reliable these days (though macOS is great), and I should've clarified. I meant their business. Google creates and destroys projects left and right. There's too much vaporware. The user experience is also very inconsistent across their products, save for the core few they've perfected like YouTube and Gmail.
 
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