Hello, Siri! About a month back, messages from all over the flooded Apple offices all over the world.
It was the birth anniversary of one of the greatest innovators of our times, Steve Jobs.
Steve Jobs talked about how people in his office felt embarrassed by Siri and thought he had lost his mind in marketing it. But Jobs saw what no one else could.
In 2011, what started off as a voice integration program would turn out to be a turning point in the history of technological innovation, and it goes by the name of SIRI.
The Beginning
Adam Cheyer, also known as the father of Siri, started working with computers in the 1990s.
He quickly realized that there would come a day when humans would want to interact with machines conversationally.
He then started working on a prototype, which later became Siri. Over 50 versions of this technology were built.
But the release of the first iPhone gave him the opportunity to sync it with a machine for real.
Over the years, Cheyer and his counterparts worked on making a more marketable and commercial version of this technology.
He later sold the technology to Apple for $200 million. It wasn’t kept as just an app but the core strategy across multiple Apple devices.
Siri, in its full glory, was launched on October 4, 2011, a day before Steve Jobs’s death.
Hey Siri, What’s Up?
Siri is a virtual voice-controlled assistant of Apple Inc. It responds to users’ queries by speaking back to them and presenting relevant information on the home screen.
A question about Siri’s voice pops up almost every day. Susan Benett, a voiceover artist hired by ScanSoft, lent her voice to Siri.
This is just a CNN report, as Apple has never made a formal statement about it. Siri started off with the Apple iPhone 4s and now operates on all Apple devices, including iPads and Macbooks.
What Can You Do for Me Today, Siri?
Siri might seem complicated to use at first, but it is incredibly helpful once you get the hang of it. It can handle a wide range of tasks on your devices.
You can create reminders, set alarms, take notes, and mark conferences. It can also change system settings.
It adapts your personality of language and hence weaves even better tailor-made responses for you.
You can use it to search for movie times, scores, and weather forecasts or even to prepare grocery lists.
It helps you call people hands-free and FaceTime with them the same way without even having to look at the phone.
Siri has also made a remarkable mark in the infrastructure industry. It is now being used to control activities in a smart home.
It also helps with navigation. If you’re bored, you can always look up to her for fun conversations.
