It was recently reported that the arrival of the English version of the Bixby AI was delayed in the U.S. because of insufficient language resources. However, the English Bixby has been officially released in the U.S. The rumor mill had predicted Samsung would be launching a smart speaker equipped with Bixby AI. Newer information suggests that Samsung is not working on such a device.

The beta version of Bixby was made available to the users in the U.S. in June. It was the found that beta testers did not enjoy using the Bixby assistant as it could not respond to questions and requests in English. Now that the English edition has finally arrived, Samsung seems to have resolved the major issues. So, the Bixby AI is available on the Galaxy S8 duo in the U.S. and South Korea. The Galaxy Note FE and Galaxy A7 (2017) are the two smartphones that support Bixby AI in South Korea even though these smartphones do not feature a dedicated launcher button for Bixby

To use Bixby in English, users need to update to the latest version of the software. And then, users can use the dedicated Bixby button to launch it. Users can say “Hi Bixby” to launch it. Bixby can learn and understand the preferences and behavior of the user. Switching between voice, touch and text commands is a seamless experience on Bixby and this is something that sets it apart from other digital assistants. It is well-integrated with core apps from Samsung, but its support for third-party apps is not that efficient. However, Bixby Labs is working on integrating Bixby with more apps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWXIDwHTg-8

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Earlier in this month, the Wall Street Journal had reported that Samsung is working on a Bixby enabled smart speaker and the device is codenamed as Vega. All the major brands like Amazon, Google, Apple and Microsoft have their smart speaker system and Samsung was also expected to join the bandwagon. The official stated by the South Korean company puts to rest all the rumors surrounding the Bixby powered smart speaker.

Here is the official statement from the company:  “Samsung currently does not view Al speakers as marketable, as the global market is already dominated by unbeatable Amazon and the Korean market is too small to make profits.”

Speculations claimed that once the English version of Bixby is made official, Samsung may work on the smart speaker. It was expected to be equipped with Harman Kardon speaker and support other smart home products from Samsung.

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Samsung had introduced its Bixby assistant at the launch of Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ smartphones. These Bixby enabled flagship also comes with a dedicated Bixby launcher key. The recently launched Galaxy Note FE (the refurbished Galaxy Note 7) also features the Bixby AI. At the launch Galaxy S8 duo, Bixby AI supported only Korean language. The English version of Bixby AI was expected to be available by the end of this month. However, fresh news revealed by Korea Herald, a South Korean publication states that the English edition of Bixby AI has been delayed.

Koh Dong-jin, Samsung’s mobile chief had said in April that the English and Chinese editions of Bixby would be arriving in May and in June respectively. However, fresh information that the arrival of both the editions has been delayed.  A Samsung representative revealed to the South Korean publication that more time is being consumed in the development of Bixby in other languages. The reason behind the delay of Bixby in other languages is that it lacks vast data which plays a vital role in deep learning technology.

When there is enough data available for deep learning, a digital assistant will be able to learn and evolve on the data that is available. The South Korean did launch the Bixby AI in April with its features such as image recognition and home controls. However, the major feature of using voice command to navigate through the phone is still unavailable in English language.  Another issue that has caused the delayed of English version of Bixby is the communication problems such as geographical and language barriers between the Samsung engineers in the U.S. and South Korea have resulted in slow progress of English edition of Bixby.

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One should be aware of the fact Samsung has already started the registrations for beta version of Bixby in the U.S. in June. Hence, it was expected to be available by this month. Speculations have it that it will be arriving by the fall this year. Samsung have said that Bixby beta testers have found that the Bixby AI is delivering unsatisfactory results when it comes to responding to questions and requests.

Bixby is struggling at the moment. Will it be able to take on the other virtual assistants from popular brands? According to Ovum, a consultancy firm based in London, Google Assistant has a market share of 23.3 percent, Samsung’s Bixby accounts 14.5 percent market share, Siri from Apple has a market share of 13.1 percent, Alexa from Amazon and Microsoft’s Cortana have respective market share of 3.9 percent and 2.3 percent. The research claims that Bixby can become the second largest voice assistant in the world by 2021.

Samsung Vega is the rumored smart speaker from the South Korean company. It will be powered by Bixby assistant. However, since the arrival of Bixby has been delayed, it would take more time for Samsung Vega to become reality.

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Various major tech brands such as Apple, Google, Amazon and Microsoft have released their own smart speaker devices. It all started with the launch of Amazon Echo smart speaker in 2016. Speculations have it that Samsung is also working on a smart speaker that will be driven by its own Bixby AI.

A smart speaker consists of a speaker and a digital AI assistant. Amazon Echo is driven by its Alexa AI virtual assistant. Apple’s Siri voice assistant is available on its HomePod smart speaker. The Google Home smart speaker has Google Assistant and a speaker. Microsoft and Samsung collaborated to release Invoke speaker system featuring Harman Kardon speaker and Cortana voice assistant. According to the Wall Street Journal, Samsung is working on a smart speaker that is codenamed as Vega that will be coupled with Bixby AI.

The Bixby AI assistant was first made available on Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ flagship phones. Samsung has even included a dedicated Bixby button on these smartphones. The recently launched Galaxy Note Fan Edition that is exclusively available in South Korea is also equipped with Bixby AI. Currently, Bixby AI only supports Korean language. Its seems that Samsung Vega smart speaker may not arrive soon because the English edition of Bixby is still unavailable.

Its English edition is still in open beta phase and is currently available for testing for registered users in the U.S. Bixby AI is likely to be available for public use by the end of this or by the coming month. Once the Bixby AI is made official for U.S. audience, there is a possibility that Samsung Vega may also release soon. Samsung Vega is likely to support its other smart products such as Smart Home and IoT enabled TVs.. It is expected to feature Harman Kardon speaker as the well-known audio system brand has been acquired by Samsung.

Compared to 2016, smart speaker users have almost doubled this year. A recent survey has revealed that 36 million users in the U.S. use a smart speaker at least one time in a month. When Samsung had launched S Voice couple of years ago, there was no major competition for it.  However, Samsung Vega will face stiff competition from rivals like Amazon Echo, Apple HomePod, Google Home and Microsoft Invoke

What do you think about the Samsung Vega? Will it be able to find success among rival smart speakers?

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