Microsoft wants to make Cortana work in Google Assistant

Microsoft wants to make its digital assistant Cortana work in Google Assistant. Director Satya Nadella said this in an interview. Cortana already works as a skill in Amazon’s digital assistant Alexa.

Both companies have not announced such a partnership, but Nadella tells Business Insider that he would like to. Nadella sees Cortana as a Microsoft service that should function as an app or skill in as many places as possible, just as it does with Office and other Microsoft services. Cortana is now available in Windows 10 and as an app for Android and iOS.

It is unknown how Cortana should work in Google Assistant, but in Alexa, users can ask to speak to Cortana, after which Microsoft Assistant services are available to perform tasks and answer questions. The integration works both ways: Alexa can be called from Cortana. Google has not responded to Nadella’s statements.

The move would fit in with Microsoft’s strategy to offer its services on as many platforms as possible. It previously released Outlook, Office, browser Edge and more applications for mobile operating systems such as Android and iOS. Browser Edge is also coming to macOS from competitor Apple.

Microsoft has made different choices with Cortana than Google and Amazon did with their assistants. In recent years, the search giant and web store wanted their assistant to work on as many products from other companies as possible, so that there are now speakers, alarm clocks and other devices that offer integration with the voice assistant.