Virtual assistants- capabilities continue to increase as they improve at capturing inferential data on personal preferences, biases, expectations and habits. They will soon be able to predict our future likes and dislikes and our next needs and wants. Tasks from simple appointment setting with a human-like cadence to bringing you your beverage of choice are quickly gaining prevalence.
Will digital assistant technology continue to become as humanistic as possible, or have we reached a point where we'll hit the pause button and begin dialing these features back a bit?
Advancements in sophisticated machine learning algorithms through the use of artificial neural networks help digital assistants respond in a more human-like way. But what exactly are everyday consumers using these assistants for? And how often do they use them? A survey released by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) this year found that most users between the ages of 18 and 64 speak to their device at least once a day. Below is a chart of the types of these commands, with the remainder of respondents "never" using voice commands for each purpose.

Why is the adoption rate for more complex tasks so low?
Context Is King in the Consumer Adoption Realm
As device sophistication increases, the usefulness of these assistants will also increase, driving further adoption. Adoption is gated by the utility a digital assistant provides.
The future for virtual assistants is conversational, human-like and empathetic behavior. The key to humanizing conversation is the ability to understand context. When digital assistants begin to truly understand us, the accuracy and relevancy of their responses will improve greatly. We, as individuals, all have different communication styles. While one may find the verbose discourse with Alexa irksome, others may prefer the loquacious nature of it. This type of preference is why Alexa now has a "brief mode" that attempts to streamline conversations to make it feel more as if you're having a conversation with your teenager. Google Assistant can now speak 30 languages and pick up on polite requests, which typically include "please" and "thank you," and will respond accordingly.
The ability to have a more personalized, contextual conversation with digital assistants is the key to consumer adoption success. Ultimately, greater awareness and user adoption will come once we better understand the technology, which will only happen when it can better understand us.
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