Amazon launches voice assistant partnership with 34 companies

Amazon announces the Voice Interoperability Initiative. 34 other companies are affiliated with that initiative to enable multiple voice assistants on one device. Microsoft participates, but Google, Apple and Samsung are missing.

With the initiative, Amazon wants to ensure that hardware is able to work with various voice assistants. Users should be able to use multiple assistants with one speaker, each of which is activated with a different word. As an example, Amazon cites using its own Alexa assistant, Microsoft’s Cortana, Orange’s Djingo, and Salesforce’s Einstein on a single device.

Google, Apple and Samsung are not affiliated with the initiative. Those three companies are major players in the voice assistant market and seem to have no interest in devices that other companies’ assistants also work on.

Of the affiliated companies, Amazon and Microsoft are mainly known for their voice assistant. Furthermore, this mainly concerns tech companies that make parts or audio hardware. Spotify, Logitech, Intel, Qualcomm, NXP, Amlogic, MediaTek, Orange, Verizon, BMW, Sony, Tencent, Baidu, and Harman Kardon have joined.

Concrete details about hardware that will work with multiple voice assistants are not yet available. Amazon will host a major event on Wednesday where it will likely showcase new hardware. The company may show equipment there that reflects the Voice Interoperability Initiative.