The Digital Personal Assistant Problem Siri Still Hasn't Solved
Posted: August 9, 2012 at 5:17 pm
Ilya Gelfenbeyn is the CEO of Speaktoit, the top-rated virtual assistant on Android, and an authority on natural language processing. We caught up with him to ask why we still have to talk down to digital personal assistants, and when exactly we might acquire a more natural relationship--and tone--with them. He answered in the most natural tone he could muster.
FAST COMPANY: This is the year the digital personal assistant has really taken off. Speaktoit has been downloaded several million times since launching last year. And Siri is a household name. But my sense is that these assistants still have a long way to go. ILYA GELFENBEYN: The field is still in a really early phase of development. Its something like the search engines in the beginning of the '90s. Theres a long way to improve--theres not yet something like the Google of this industry. Were working on some functions to make an assistant much more helpful, by working with lots of different services. Natural language is a way to combine them in one place.
Can you explain natural language processing, in brief? It means you can just tell the assistant whatever you want, and dont have to remember particular commands.
But I still feel like we have to talk down to Siri. When will she be able to understand slang, so I can just talk to her like I talk to my homies? Theres a lot of work to do. Were working on a natural language processing engine that will take into account conversation context like location, dialogue history, and user preferences. Different users can mean different things with the same words, and the assistant should understand the context.
Whats an example? A user can say, Im bored, and a personal assistant should understand what to provide to the user. For some people it can say, Lets go somewhere, I can find you a nice nightclub. For others, it will provide a joke. For others, itll say, lets call some friends.
And how long till we can talk to Siri or Speaktoit as casually as we do to our friends? You should compare it not to talking to friends, but to a real life personal assistant. With friends you can discuss general stuff, but a virtual assistant is not created for that. I would say in three years it will be much better--it will support all basic tasks, and definitely will not have problems with setting up appointments, working with your phone, working with basic features. Of course it still will not be able to replace a real personal assistant in some situations.
When will we get that Google of assistants? In the next decade? Yes, I think so. In the next decade, we should have a good combination of technologies and the features they implement.
Is some sort of breakthrough needed, the way Sergey Brin and Larry Page figured out the significance of linking? I wouldnt say theres a magic formula. It just really requires hard work. It may of course include some new algorithms, but theres no one magic formula.
Who will support this research--universities, enterprise, military? Enterprise is much more focused on this. Universities will be a good resource for fundamental knowledge.
The military had a hand in developing some of the tech behind Siri. Are they out of the picture now? They can have some role. But the personal assistant will not be focused on military purposes.
Read more here:
The Digital Personal Assistant Problem Siri Still Hasn't Solved
- Getting Back On Track And Winning The Race [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2010]
- NLP Coaching Testimonial for Michael J. Emery [Last Updated On: April 8th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 8th, 2010]
- Chicago Motivational Speaker- How would you like an extra day in your week [Last Updated On: April 10th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 10th, 2010]
- Create a Plan with Chrisitan Leadership and Skills Development [Last Updated On: April 13th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 13th, 2010]
- Financial Freedom with Chrisitan Leadership and Develop Skills [Last Updated On: April 13th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 13th, 2010]
- Prayer in Personal Chrisitan Leadership and Skills Development [Last Updated On: April 14th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 14th, 2010]
- How to Implement Chrisitan Leadership and Skills Development [Last Updated On: April 14th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 14th, 2010]
- The Mystery of the Broken Sunflower Stalk and Your Success [Last Updated On: April 16th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 16th, 2010]
- FLEAs Barriers to Success for Personal Leadership [Last Updated On: April 17th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 17th, 2010]
- Shout out! Stellar healing powers of Journey Work [Last Updated On: April 18th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 18th, 2010]
- Winning In Life Now: How To Separate Through To A More Joyrful You [Last Updated On: April 19th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 19th, 2010]
- You don't know what you don't know [Last Updated On: April 21st, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 21st, 2010]
- Prosper Now Business Seminar Long Beach Craig Duswalt [Last Updated On: April 21st, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 21st, 2010]
- Fox and Rabbit Story, Personal Development Building Confidence [Last Updated On: April 22nd, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 22nd, 2010]
- Self Help Online Personal Development Program of Miiionaires [Last Updated On: April 22nd, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 22nd, 2010]
- Chicago Personal Development Speaker - How To Cange Your Mindset - Pt. 1 [Last Updated On: April 29th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 29th, 2010]
- Chicago Personal Development Speaker-How To Change Your Mindset - Pt. 2 [Last Updated On: April 29th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 29th, 2010]
- The Difference Between Faith Light VS Flash Light [Last Updated On: April 30th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 30th, 2010]
- Personal Development Are You Lukewarm About Your Success? [Last Updated On: April 30th, 2010] [Originally Added On: April 30th, 2010]
- Do YOU Love YOURSELF-Network Marketing Success Tip [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2010]
- Building Your Belief Daily by John Di Lemme: Personal Development Success [Last Updated On: May 10th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 10th, 2010]
- Best Place to Make a Change in Yourself [Last Updated On: May 11th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 11th, 2010]
- Michael J. Emery NLP and Hypnosis - Personal Development Coach & Trainer [Last Updated On: May 11th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 11th, 2010]
- NLP Coaching Gym with Michael J. Emery - Personal Development Coach and Trainer [Last Updated On: May 11th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 11th, 2010]
- Search for Much more Happiness by Michelle Prince: Personal Development Book [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2010]
- How To Earn Million Dollars in Network Marketing: Personality Development [Last Updated On: May 13th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 13th, 2010]
- Putin comments to Ministries of Finance and Economic Development [Last Updated On: May 15th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 15th, 2010]
- Full Potential Ep. 1 Creating High Value Routines [Last Updated On: May 17th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 17th, 2010]
- The Sufficient Line by John Di Lemme: Personal Development Success [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2010]
- Undeniable Attitude by John Di Lemme: Personal Development Motivation [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2010]
- How to Perform a Personal SWOT [Last Updated On: May 20th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 20th, 2010]
- Oscoda, MI Personal Coaching Program - George Morse [Last Updated On: May 20th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 20th, 2010]
- Time Mangement by John Di Lemme: Personality Development [Last Updated On: May 20th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 20th, 2010]
- Full Potential Ep 6Taking Action When You're Not 100 % Ready [Last Updated On: May 21st, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 21st, 2010]
- Discover Greater Happiness by Michelle Prince: Best Personal Development Books [Last Updated On: May 21st, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 21st, 2010]
- The Benefits and Features of the Lifestyle Freedom Club - Personal Development [Last Updated On: May 21st, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 21st, 2010]
- setting goals, achieving goals, SMART goals, Realistic goals, goal setting, [Last Updated On: May 21st, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 21st, 2010]
- Learn How To Develop Your Mindset Through - Personal Development Success [Last Updated On: May 24th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 24th, 2010]
- Full Potential Ep.7 Two Keys to Creating Greater Wealth [Last Updated On: May 24th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 24th, 2010]
- Full Potential Show Ep 8 pt 1 How to Take Control of Your Financial Situation [Last Updated On: May 25th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 25th, 2010]
- Full Potential Show Ep 8 Pt. 2 How to Take Control of Your Financial Situation [Last Updated On: May 25th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 25th, 2010]
- "Mindset For Success" Your "Personal Development" Success Plan [Last Updated On: May 25th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 25th, 2010]
- Help Promote Self Development and Motivation in Your Life [Last Updated On: May 25th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 25th, 2010]
- Full Potential Show Ep 9 Pt.1 3 Levers for Greater Wealth [Last Updated On: May 26th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 26th, 2010]
- Full Potential Show Ep 9 Pt.2 - 3 Levers for Greater Wealth [Last Updated On: May 26th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 26th, 2010]
- Full Potential Show Ep10 Deal Effectively with Social Anxiety [Last Updated On: May 27th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 27th, 2010]
- Benefits of Being a LifeStyle Freedom Club Member: Self Help Personal [Last Updated On: May 28th, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 28th, 2010]
- Learn How You Can Become a Member Today - Positive Personal Development [Last Updated On: May 31st, 2010] [Originally Added On: May 31st, 2010]
- Full Potential Show Ep11-2 Interview with Youngest Climber to Summit 7 Peaks [Last Updated On: June 4th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 4th, 2010]
- FP Ep 11-1 Interview with Youngest to Summit 7 Peaks [Last Updated On: June 4th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 4th, 2010]
- Giving Your child the Gift of Experiences [Last Updated On: June 4th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 4th, 2010]
- The Gift Of Goodbye: Self Help Success [Last Updated On: June 7th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 7th, 2010]
- Secrets To Combat The Negative Bombardment Of The Fear Flu: Self Help Definition [Last Updated On: June 9th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 9th, 2010]
- Faith Light VS Flash Light with John Di Lemme: Motivation Speaker [Last Updated On: June 9th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 9th, 2010]
- Are You Hardwired For Success? Get a Millionaire Mind! [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2010]
- Results of Reality Responsibility by John di Lemme: Positive Personal [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2010]
- The Importance Of Leadership In Your Home Business [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2010]
- Download FREE Expert Downloads on Panel of Personal Development Experts [Last Updated On: June 15th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 15th, 2010]
- Release You Past and Speak Your Future by John Di lemme: Self Help Positive [Last Updated On: June 17th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 17th, 2010]
- 3 Tips on Choosing The Right Personal Development [Last Updated On: June 22nd, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 22nd, 2010]
- Sherrie Munday - CO Letting Go film release Interview [Last Updated On: June 30th, 2010] [Originally Added On: June 30th, 2010]
- Stuart Bell - NL Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2010]
- Shifting Your Focus & Shifting Your Emotions [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2010]
- Aimee Daniels - DC Letting Go film release Interview [Last Updated On: July 4th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 4th, 2010]
- Jenny Biggers - CO Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2010]
- Katy McPherson - CO Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 6th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 6th, 2010]
- John Assaraf (The Secret) + Massive Action = Massive Results [Last Updated On: July 7th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 7th, 2010]
- Joseph Mullan - UK Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 7th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 7th, 2010]
- Doris Griffin - CA Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 9th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 9th, 2010]
- Maarten Klatte - NL Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 10th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 10th, 2010]
- New Show! Today Is That Day [Last Updated On: July 11th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 11th, 2010]
- Gary Balke - Sedona Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 12th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 12th, 2010]
- Wendy Shand - UK Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 12th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 12th, 2010]
- Wealth Tribes Part 1 of 2 at the WealthVest Seminar in Vegas [Last Updated On: July 14th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 14th, 2010]
- Achieve Success in Work at Home Business and Personal Life [Last Updated On: July 15th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 15th, 2010]
- Barbara Lovejoy - CA Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 19th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 19th, 2010]
- Wake up with Jay! 07-20-10 Personal Development! [Last Updated On: July 20th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 20th, 2010]
- Give More to Achieve Business Success and Financial Freedom [Last Updated On: July 24th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 24th, 2010]
- Fran Menley - CO Letting Go Movie Release Comments Video [Last Updated On: July 25th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 25th, 2010]
- Write Down Goals to Clarify and Reach Your Success [Last Updated On: July 30th, 2010] [Originally Added On: July 30th, 2010]