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Disclaimer: This paper partially fulfills a writing requirement for first-year (freshman) engineering students at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering. This paper is a student paper, not a professional paper. This paper is based on publicly available information and may not provide complete analyses of all relevant data. If this paper is used for any purpose other than this author’s partial fulfillment of a writing requirement for the first year (freshman) engineering students at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, users are doing so at their own risk.

SMART SPEAKERS AND MY OPINION

Waleed Tariq ([email protected])

A PROBLEM FACED BY ALL “Alexa Voice Services” (AVS) [2]; this is the technology that talks back to you and does your bidding. As the world becomes more advanced, people are getting Smart speakers typically include Wi-Fi and even lazier. With the help of new technology, our daily life connectivity so they can be linked through mobile devices, becomes easier than it was just a few years ago. The focus of TVs, any other smart devices. These features alone are very almost all new technology is on how to make the user's life less helpful for all Americans. According to a study done by the complicated. Eventually, it hit such a high point that “personal PEW Research Center, 77% of Americans own a , assistants” were created. It began with simple yet very compared to 2011, when only 35% of US adults owned advanced, voice recognition. [3]. This means that the majority of Americans The major turning point was at the end of 2011 with the would be able to use a to its full capability just introduction of by Apple. I would call this the turning because they own a smartphone. point because it was one of the first hand-held assistants that Not only are smartphones a way to connect with smart would work hand-in-hand with something people use every speakers, but with as well. Another study done by the day - their phone. This created a large demand and shift in PEW Research Center states that 78% of US adults own focus towards voice activated/voice recognition assistants. desktop computers or laptops [3]. An increasing number of Eventually, the first dedicated speaker was turned into a “smart Americans are being integrated into the technological life and speaker”; this would be done by in 2014, calling it the this is the rising group that the smart speaker's industry is . The Echo was revolutionary because of its aiming to attract. Seeing the upward trend in smartphone collaboration consisting of a speaker and voice assistant, and usage, which will only continue to grow, shows their business because it was made a speaker, a voice assistant, and it was will be profitable. made by one of the largest online shopping websites in the With of all the technology included in a smart speaker, world. Following the Echo came the Home. In 2016, they may seem expensive but because there’s such a wide the most-used search engine, Google, created its version of a variety of options, the prices vary from $50-$400. The smart speaker. As time continues to pass, more companies are cheaper ones are not too bad by comparison; they all contain investing in the growing smart speaker market. This is very the basic voice assistant. The greatest difference is the voice evident in the timeline voicebot.ai created, which gives a short assistant offered, with choices ranging from Amazon Echo, yet informative history of the “Voice Revolution” [1]. Google Home etc [4]. All of these accomplish the same thing, just varying slightly based on personal preference. WHAT ARE SMART SPEAKERS

A smart speaker is a wireless and smart audio playback SMART SPEAKERS SIGNIFICANCE: device that uses several types of connectivity for additional SOCIETY functions. Smart speakers have revolutionized the world and given users an easier life. They are not restricted to just the Technology seems to be moving faster than most people basics, but they can do a wide variety of things that can be can handle. When a new piece of technology comes out, people accessed by almost all ages. Not only are they speakers, but immediately begin learning how to use it. Then a new they also can control the lights in your home, order food, and company releases an even newer piece of technology before call Ubers. With the addition of voice-activated digital most people can even learn to use the previous one. This can assistants, these speakers can act as hubs. be especially tough for the older generation which already has Their connectivity solves the one problem modern day people a tough time learning how to use a smartphone. Compared to are always trying to solve- how can we make our lives easier. other novel technology, smart speakers are exceptionally easy These smart speakers are essentially personal butlers that to use. can cater to our specific needs. Amazon Echo created the University of Pittsburgh, Swanson School of Engineering 1 SUBMISSION DATE 10.31.17

Waleed Tariq

The integration of the voice assistants is what makes the SMART SPEAKERS SIGNIFICANCE: ME speakers different. Through the microphone in the speakers, the user will be able to ask almost anything. They could ask Ever since I was a kid, I was always the technical one; for the weather, time, reminders they may have set, amongst learning new things technologically has always been appealing other innovations still being integrated [4]. All the user has to to me. It was typically my responsibility to learn the new do is say a certain command like “Hey Alexa”, for the Amazon quirks and features of new technology and showing my family Echo, and it will begin listening to whatever you need to ask. how it worked. One day my neighbor got the new Amazon The significance towards society is the increased Echo. I fell in love immediately. It was amazing to me how simplicity for those less technologically inclined people. such a technology existed. All you had to do was say its name, Allowing people to simply use their voice to control certain and it would attempt to answer any question you asked. His nuanced parts of their life is truly incredible. As the daily life whole house was connected through the Echo. of most people continues to get more complex, an object like Recently I have been considering computer engineering a smart speaker will make it easier for most. A user can control as a major. This technology is made for coding and copious the lights or heating in a home, or even creating a simple to-do amounts of work with a computer. At first, this was not list that would be incorporated into the user’s smartphone. appealing to me, but now it excites and intrigues me. I believe Saving time is huge in this current society. One of the that smart speakers are very important to the future because of major selling points of a smart speaker is the amount of time it the connectivity it will bring to the world. It could help my saves by doing the remedial tasks that most spend more time parents in the upcoming years as they get older; all they will than needed in doing. Things such as setting alarms, creating need is to call out to the speaker to dim the lights, turn on the to-do lists, checking the weather, booking an Uber. All of these TV, or change the volume. I would love to attempt to make tasks can be done simply by ones’ voice. I believe that the them better and more advanced in the future. The algorithms creation of this technology is very important in the are very advanced and normally it would scare me, but I want advancement of modern day society. Not only is this piece of to embrace these challenging problems and try to solve them. technology significant to the current society, but also to the engineering community specifically. CONCLUSION

SMART SPEAKERS SIGNIFICANCE: Smart speakers, in my opinion, will change the future. PROFESSIONALS They are a new technology that has the potential to expand like the smartphones did. With all of the engineering support from The feat of creating technology that could respond and large and influential companies, they will be promoted very recognize voice was incredible and is very new as well. It was well and will gain the support of many. first created in the mid-1900s with IBM introducing its “IBM They hold great significance towards the society in Shoebox”. It was the first digital speech recognition tool which which I live in. Increased technology use has made people recognized 16 words and digits. Since then, engineers of all lazier and more reliant on the device they use every day. With disciplines delved into the new world of voice recognition. the introduction of smart speakers, they will now be able to One of the major disciplines of engineering would be computer use those almost all the time and in the comfort of their own engineering that has a large focus on these speakers. I have home. It will simplify their daily life by simplifying their recently found some interest in this field. These engineers are remedial tasks. the ones creating the program that the speakers follow, ensuring that the program they make will allow the Engineers around the world are working on improving microphone to catch certain wavelengths of the speech given the smart speakers and always coming out with the latest to create words that will then be turned into commands or versions. Even the basic speakers have the ability to be questions. Multiple colleges with high ranked engineering updated and will gain the new technology. programs such as Georgia Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, and the University of California Santa Barbara SOURCES created a brief history of the technology development of automatic speech recognition [5]. [1] Mutchler, Ava. “Voice Assistant Timeline: A Short History The increased support from the engineering society of the Voice Revolution” voicebot.ai. 07.14.17. Accessed allowed this technology to surpass what it began as - from a 10.29.17. https://www.voicebot.ai/2017/07/14/timelinevoice- simple IBM code that was restricted to only 16 words and assistants-short-history-voice-revolution/ numbers, to being able to control a house. The value of [2] Rouse, Margaret. “smart speaker”. Whatis.com. Accessed research and funding dedicated to smart speakers is self- 10.30.17. http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/smart- evident because of the way they solve an everyday problem speaker for so many—the simplification of our daily lives. [3] “Mobile Fact Sheet”. Pewinternet.org. 01.12.17. Accessed 10.30.17. http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheet/mobile/

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[4] Kabir, Kashfia. “Smart speakers – everything you need to know”. Whathifi.com. 10.19.17. Accessed 10.30.17. https://www.whathifi.com/advice/smart-speakers-everything- you-need-to-know [5] Juang. B.H.. “Automatic Speech Recognition – A Brief History of the Technology Development”. Accessed 10.30.17. http://www.ece.ucsb.edu/Faculty/Rabiner/ece259/Reprints/35 4_LALI-ASRHistory-final-10-8.pdf [6] Heater, Brian. “Comparing Alexa, , and Siri smart speakers”. Techcrunch.com. 10.08.17. Accessed 10.30.17. https://techcrunch.com/2017/10/08/comparing-alexa-google- assistant-cortana-and-siri-smart-speakers/

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank my writing instructor for grading my previous paper so I am able to learn from my many foolish mistakes. Not only did he take his time to grade my abhorred paper, but he took the time to edit it and critique me. Without the support of my loving parents, I would not be here. I would’ve given up on this engineering dream a while ago. Once again my brother is one to thank. I live with him so I see him every day. He is always there to support me and I greatly appreciate it.

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