14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung acquired Viv Labs last year and it was believed that the upcoming Bixby AI virtual assistant would be based on the start-up company’s technology. A new report by The Wall Street Journal seems to indicate otherwise.
Viv Labs was an artificial intelligence startup, founded by the creators of Apple’s Siri. The startup created a unique and open artificial intelligence platform that allowed third-party developers to build conversational assistants much like Siri.
The platform also allowed developers to integrate a natural language-based interface in apps and services. Samsung’s takeover of Viv Labs would naturally make us believe that the South Korean company used their technology to create Bixby. But the latest report shows that Samsung won’t be using the technology in its upcoming flagship.
Bixby will be based on S Voice
The Wall Street Journal cited sources familiar with the matter, stating that Bixby is rather an upgrade from Samsung’s S Voice and that engineers have been working on providing the software with improvements over the past few months.
Bixby will reportedly be able to answer to voiced questions from users and may have a dedicated hardware button, as previous leaks have suggested. Bixby will be competing against Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri.
When it took over Viv Labs, Samsung did say that the technology would be integrated into “Samsung home appliances, wearables and more,” but didn’t specifically say smartphones. Samsung’s S Voice is the intelligent personal assistant found on smartphones built after 2013.
It allows users to open apps, set alarms, update social network accounts, open apps and get weather updates. Bixby will incorporate many more features and it is said to be made available in 8 languages.
The report also confirmed previously rumored features on the new phone, including a headphone jack, the lack of a physical home button, a rear fingerprint scanner, and dual-curved displays on both models. Sources also said that the phone would be made available for purchase in two months.