During a demo with WIRED, the
Assistant mistranslated at one point—though the translated text also appeared
on the seven-inch smart display, so both men were able to use context clues to
figure out what the other was asking. (Humans! So clever.) The conversation
also didn’t feel completely frictionless, since the Assistant takes a second or
two to translate in between each person’s remarks. But the brief interaction we
saw still pointed toward a future in which Babel fish\–like translators exist at any kind of
service desk where language could potentially become a barrier.
Google already offers
near-instantaneous translations on the web and on mobile with Google Translate.
And when it released its wire-free Pixel Buds headphones
a couple of years ago it introduced the concept of language translation in near
real time, with the tap of a button. That same translation feature later came
to all Google Assistant–optimized headphones. But that doesn’t always work so
well; primarily because it’s an isolating experience, and only the person
wearing the headphones hears the translation. And Google Translate requires you
to open an app first.
The Interpreter feature is
launching today as a small pilot at a few hotels; one in New York, another in
San Francisco, and Caesar's Palace in Vegas. It will support 27 languages to
start, and will be available only on the Google Home Hub, Google Home speakers,
and third-party Google Assistant displays.
Google also said that the
Assistant would now work within Google Maps, so you can use your voice to reply
to texts or send your ETA while you’re driving. Amazon’s Alexa, meanwhile, has appeared in literally
dozens of new products so far at the show, ranging from lighting kits to
“smart” beds to a voice-controlled toilet.
While CES
is primarily a place to gape at new hardware, tech giants Google, Amazon, and
even Apple (which doesn’t exhibit at CES) have been sucking up a fair amount of
air in the room with their software announcements—further proof that the
platforms that enable these connected products are just as important as the
gadgets themselves.
Source: https://www.wired.com/story/google-assistant-interpreter-mode/
(Accessed on January 11, 2019)
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