It’s interesting reading that Alexa looks set to lose Amazon $10bn. I have never used it, and so can’t comment on how well it works, but what I do know is that I use Siri all the time.
I mean all the time. Several times an hour, all through the day. I use it to set reminders, to take notes, to write emails, to instigate phone calls, to write blog posts, to play music and podcasts, to turn lights on and off, to do calculations, and on and on… I seriously wouldn’t be without it.
Sure it occasionally makes mistakes, especially with dictation (hey, there are people who haven’t a clue what I say never mind technology), but the benefits massively outweigh the downsides.
I don’t know what has gone wrong with Alexa, but I do know that I love Siri.
The Obvious? 
I suspect it’s less something has gone wrong for Alexa, and more that Apple has a clear purpose for Siri. Siri is there to make Apple devices more attractive. Alexa currently just sells loss-making home audio devices, and a “shop via Alexa” business model never really emerged.
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I meant as a business venture rather than technically but wasn’t clear about that. Presumably with all the services that have been written for Alexa it is meant to provide similar functionality to Siri but I guess it’s the old Apple advantage of controlling the whole ecosystem so that it “just works”.
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I have no desire to talk to a digital assistant at all. pencil, notebook, some note taking apps are all i need. I feel I’m evesdropped on by audio assistants.
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Each to their own.
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I miss Wildfire which was an early Virtual Assistant on my Orange phone. It had the potential to be far more than Siri or Alexa. It was something that was paid for rather than given away for free. Alas the 3G network was not up to the task and the change of ownership at Orange meant that the French Owners closed it down rather than developed it.
I am not a user of Amazon products and services and whenever I have used Siri I have been underwhelmed compared to what I once had and would pay to have again. How much do you think that Apple is “losing” with Siri?
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I remember Wildfire well. Probably for the reasons you gave about the network, I also remember yelling at it on a very busy Oxford Street when it failed to understand my Scottish accent. I’m not sure if Apple are losing with Siri. Like I said I use it all the time ( I used it to dictate this message) and find it incredibly reliable and varied in its uses.
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