MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — During an earnings call with analysts last week, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai discussed the growth of Google Assistant and the voice-activated Google Home speaker that it powers.
He said that there are now more than 70 home automation partners that let users control devices using Assistant on Google Home and phones — including Honeywell, Logitech, August Home and LG.
Pichai mentioned how the Assistant SDK, made available to developers for the first time this past April, should bolster the number of devices developers can create that tap into the power of Google Assistant.
“People are no longer only using a keyboard, mouse, and multi-touch, but are also using emerging inputs like voice and camera to ask questions and get things done in the real world,” said Pichai. “We are seeing this in the way people interact with the Google Assistant, which is already now available on more than 100 million devices since launching last year, and there is more to come.”
Google Assistant is one of many virtual assistants, including Siri, Cortana and of course Amazon’s Echo and Dot devices powered by Alexa, that have become popular in recent years.
A report released by eMarketer in May said 35.6 million Americans use a voice-activated assistant device as of April, up 128% from the previous year.
Smart home device adoption and awareness is also on the upswing based on a consumer survey commissioned by PlumChoice and the Z-Wave Alliance.
