At the ongoing Google I/O 2017 developer conference yesterday, Google announced that its voice-controlled digital assistant is now available on iPhone (iOS). The Assistant, which is now available on more than 100 million Android devices globally, is free to download on the iTunes store and available in the US, with more countries expected to come soon.
Starting today, we're bringing the #GoogleAssistant to iPhones. Whether at home or on the go, your Assistant is here to help. #io17 pic.twitter.com/a6T20HwnU9
— Google (@Google) May 17, 2017
As expected, Google Assistant on iOS will take on Siri on its home turf but due to API restrictions, will not be replacing it in the front home button anytime soon. The standalone app will integrate with all of Google’s tools such as Gmail, YouTube and Maps, and users can interact through voice control or typing.
It is also compatible with a number of third-party applications. The Assistant will be available in several new languages such as Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, and Japanese. Before the end of the year, Google is looking to also add support for Italian, Korean and Spanish languages.
As far as access is concerned, Siri still holds the upper hand as the user can either hold down the home button or use the ‘Hey Siri’ hands-free activation on their iOS device. While Google Assistant is better at understanding conversational queries, the user has to access via the app icon or the widget.
Also, Google released a SDK for hardware makers to be able to build apps with Google Assistant built-in. Currently available on Android phones and tablets, Android Wear smartwatches and Google Home, the Assistant is said to be coming soon to Android TV and Android Auto.
