Google is predicting a generation of screenless computing devices that rely on voice recognition, a senior engineer has said, emphasising that the company encrypts users' audio data to the same standard as text-based information.

Scott Huffman, senior engineering director at Google, said the company has seen dramatic growth of voice search and recognition tools, with recent improvements encouraging more people to start adopting the tools.

"We are looking to a future where we have a whole variety of devices," he told the Guardian. "We have a super computer in our pockets, but also one in our watch, one in our glasses, maybe on our lapel as well as our laptop. Some of those have a screen and a keyboard but some won't, and we're seeing dramatic growth in the numbers of people interacting through voice recognition."

Following the revelations about the extent of surveillance, the implications of ubiquitous microphones could raise concerns about even greater potential for intrusion into our private lives. Following the revelations, Google was the first major consumer web company to implement an encryption technique know as 'perfect forward secrecy', which adds an extra level of security around the transmission of user data.

That standard of encryption will also apply to audio, Huffman emphasised. "Encryption applies to any data flowing between Google's data centres," he said.

"OK Google…" now extended to desktop voice search

In the US, Google has already launched a extensive pilot project for Glass, its wearable computing project which offers basic directions, photos and video and basic web searches mostly through voice commands.

Google is also expanding voice controls on its mobile software Android, which already accounts for around 60% of the world's smartphones equivalent to one billion devices worldwide, as well as desktop machines. It has introduced the universal command "OK, Google…" which triggers a voice command across devices, and can access diary reminders, maps, SMS and other tools. There is also a nutrition check, which will search calorific information for food.

Google won't give the proportion of users who use voice controls regularly on their Android devices, but figures suggest around 3% of the US population uses them daily. More than half the population of the US own a smartphone with voice capability and two thirds of those are aware of voice controls. Just under half of those people use voice more than once each month and one in five use it daily, a Google spokesperson said.

Huffman, who has worked on mobile search for five of his eight years at Google, admitted that some web users might not be aware that Google even can be given voice instructions. He said there is an obvious use case around driving, where voice commands will remove the temptation to text or check email while driving.

"It's a cultural thing, getting used to a technology like this, but there will be a whole set of devices built around it," he said. "Two to three years ago we crossed the line from a demo to a real product, so now at least most of the time it can understand what I say. We're still work on the recognition of accents, and there are a litany of problems. But when it works, it is magic."

Bron: theguardian.com

Mening:
Waarom ik het artikel heb gelezen, komt natuurlijk door de titel. Heel vreemde vergelijking; een gsm zonder scherm dankzij spraakbediening. Zelf heb ik dit ook op mijn gsm en eerlijk gezegd maak ik er totaal geen gebruik van. Ik verschoot er zelfs van dat 3% van de bevolking van de United States dit dagelijks gebruikt! Of hier een toekomst in te zien is? Geen idee, zelf vind ik het nog een heel vaag begrip om een gsm zonder scherm te hebben. Hopelijk houden ze dit nog voor in de verre toekomst, ik heb zelf nu al moeite genoeg om de technologie bij te houden..

Trouwens, aangezien de klok op deze site verkeerd staat is dit nog maar mijn eerste artikel van 13 december. Mij vorige twee waren gepost na 23 uur op 12 december.

Wintertijd volgens mij wel degelijk correct weergegeven alhier, Emily...

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