Sonic Insights

Google has recently been testing a new notification on phone lockscreens that provides tappable access to frequent Google Assistant commands. This has been a very limited release so far.

Insights:

- How it works

- Google Assistant getting ambient

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Amazon announced the Addition of 38 new members to their Voice Interoperability Initiative, launched last September, including the likes of Facebook, Dolby, Garmin and Xiaomi . Alongside the announcement also came the Multi-Agent design guide, a white paper with design recommendations for Voice Interoperability members.

Insights:

- Voice Interoperability Initiative Background

- Multi-Agent Design Guide

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You can now control your printer with your voice thanks to Alexa Print from Amazon. Using an echo device you can ask your printer to print common items such as to-do lists, recipes, calendars, educational content, and more.

Insights:

- More to the story

- Homeschool help

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Amazon is expanding its Alexa calling features, originally debuted in 2017, alongside a new partnership with AT&T. Customers can now link their phone numbers to their Alexa account which unlocks the ability to make and receive phone calls across their Alexa enabled devices.

Insights Outline:

- The roll out

- Setup and control

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Apple is starting to invest more in podcasts. Apple Books and Oprah announced the "Oprah's Book Club" podcast. It is an 8 episode series and will look at themes from "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents," by Isabel Wilkerson.

Insights Outline:

- A little background on exclusive Apple content/podcasts

- Content in podcast series & the release info

- Apple investments into the podcasting ecosystem

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Bose’s long-awaited next generation true wireless earbuds may soon be on-

the-way according to a recently leaked video from Australian retailer, Harvey

Norman. According to the video, the earbuds will be named Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, linking the product to Bose’s popular QuietComfort over-the-ear headphone brand.

Insight Outline:

- What to expect from the new earbuds

- Background on the hearables market as it starts to fill up

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Sony Music UK, through their 4th Floor Creative Department, has started to experiment with conversational experiences on Amazon's Alexa platform in order to drive deeper relationships between artists and their fans. They recently launched the "Number One Fan" skill with Relentless Records' Tom Walker where the experience asks fans daily Q&A's with the chance to win exclusive prizes.

Insights Outline:

- Walkthrough of the conversational experience & goals for the Alexa skill

- Why Sony is testing voice tech in the first place

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"Your News Update”, a personalized news feed based on your top interests, is coming to Google Podcasts. To make the news even better, it is also coming with a more natural text-to-speech offering.

Insights Outline:

- Background of the "Your News Update" feature

- Podcast experience Vs Google Assistant experience

- Improved Text-To-Speech that has a more human feel

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Facebook’s Reality Labs is taking on a new, twofold mission: to create virtual sounds that are perceptually indistinguishable from reality and to redefine human hearing. In order to achieve this mission, the team is focusing on enhancing the fidelity of “virtual sound sources”, and using sophisticated techniques to eliminate unwanted background noise during a face-to-face conversation.

Insights Outline:

- Audio Presence

- Perceptual Superpowers

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Google announced a new feature for its phone app called "Verified Calls" that is designed to give consumers more info when a business is calling you. When a participating business calls, it will show the consumer the company's name, branding, a small badge to show that they are verified, and the reason for why they are calling in the first place.

Insights Outline

- Smartphone Compatibility 

- Value Proposition: For Consumers and Businesses

- How the "Verified Calls" feature works & the roll out

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