Amazon Echo by David Bowie is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Personal voice assistants have been a popular household item over the past few years. With capabilities like playing music, checking your calendar, and telling you the weather, it has made the lives of consumers easier. These voice assistants are starting to pop up in different workplaces and are proving to be useful in a business setting. The features of personal voice assistants that make life so easy at home also make life in the office easier. 

What Are Personal Voice Assistants? 

The most popular artificial intelligence (AI) personal voice assistants on the market are Amazon Echo, Google Home, Microsoft Cortana, and Apple’s Siri. These devices work by using a microphone that is able to understand a user’s request. Speech recognition and language analysis technology formulate a response. These devices are programmed to become more intelligent the more you use them.  

Workplaces Are Benefiting From AI Voice Assistants 

Many workplaces are already using AI voice assistants. Several other offices are anticipating the use of them over the next few years. A survey of IT Professionals found that 19% are already using personal voice assistants. Another 6% of IT professionals plan to use AI assistants within one year and 13% plan to use them within 1-2 years.  

There are several benefits that offices are gaining from using AI voice assistants. Many people have reported increased productivity, improved data analysis, and improved customer service since using these devices. Let’s take a look at how businesses are using these devices.  

Manage Calendars And Schedule Meetings 

Many offices are using these devices to schedule meetings and reminders in their calendar. This allows employees to be more productive. They can spend more time on other tasks when they can use AI to schedule their meetings. These devices allow users to easily set reminders. As a result, tasks and meetings are less likely to be forgotten about.  

Send Documents 

Several of the personal voice assistants that are on the market have the capability to send text messages and emails on command. This can be used as a way to quickly transfer information and files to coworkers. As the technology of AI voice assistants improves, we will see this feature being used more. 

Record Meetings  

These devices are proving to be useful for recording meetings. Many of these devices are in the development of having capabilities that create a searchable file of recorded meetings, conferences, seminars etc.  

In the near future, these devices could potentially produce the minutes of a meeting instantly. This would create efficiency, as well as save time and money compared to having to pay an employee to do this.  

Amazon Is Improving Echo For The Workplace 

Earlier this year, Amazon announced that Echo could be integrated with Office 365 calendars. This included integration with Hotmail, MSN, and Live accounts. The device has always been available for Google Calendar. However, Office 365 is designed for business use. By allowing this integration, Amazon Echo is more accessible for the workplace. 

There Is Still A Long Way To Go For Personal Voice Assistants

AI personal voice assistants still have a long way to go before they can dominate the workplace. The accuracy of the voice recognition software needs to be improved. Depending on the nature of tasks, inaccurate voice recognition can be costly for a business. Developers are working to make these devices better suited for workplace use. Workfit is developing a device that has the ability to transcribe meetings with 90% accuracy. This is compared to human transcribers who are about 98% accurate.  

Another concern with personal voice assistants are the security issues that are associated with them. Hackers can access these devices and use them as eavesdropping tools. You need to be aware of how these devices can pose a security threat to your business. 

Are you ready to implement new technology into your workplace? Make it easier by letting Keystone Technologies take care of the installation and setup. Learn more about our affordable rates and reliable service.