Whether normal people want to use virtual assistants or not remains to be seen, but Google has as good a shot as anyone to convince them when its Assistant comes out later this year.
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Pichai gave credit to Amazon for the Amazon Echo for creating the home device market, and said Google’s goal was to make its assistant more conversational.
Google is also pumping Android N’s graphics improvements for mobile gaming. There will be a optimal spec for VR, leading to Daydream-ready phones, with Bavor confirming that big companies like Samsung, HTC and LG will have Daydream-ready phones, some available by Autumn 2016.
The new Android Pay features announced today are a means to that end.
“As a developer, you won’t need to build a new, separate app”, according to the Android blog post. An app maker who takes advantage of Android Instant Apps would be able to produce instantly available links to buy the bag without requiring you to first install an app. The company is providing specifications for Daydream-compatible phones, headsets, and controllers. It even works on photos you’ve received using Google’s computer visions capabilities to suggest “Cute dog” when receiving a picture of a dog, or “Yummy”, “Yum clams”, or “I love linguine” when receiving a photo of pasta.
One of the more interesting new features for developers wanting to use Android Pay is going to be the PaymentRequest API, which will allow Android Pay to fill out Web payment forms through a browser.
It will also chat directly with Google to find information or navigate.
Android N is due to be released in the coming months.
Google says that unlike other home assistants, Home will work with other speakers in the house too.
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There’s a potential concern that Google is missing a chance to give its an assistant a personality, which some people like. This announcement came from Google’s Google I/O website this afternoon after the main keynote was completed – appearing, as it were, to show how Google mentioned such an update in said keynote. That could include a real piece of hardware or just new VR features in the next version of Android. The company’s competitor to Siri, Cortana and Alexa, Assistant is notably lacking a cute name or anything that indicates a gender or personality. A similar headset, the Gear VR, made by Samsung and powered by Facebook’s Oculus subsidiary, costs $100. Most importantly, it will support 72 new emojis.
