Hey, Siri, show voice assistant user stats

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Overall, it found that 30.2% of internet users had interacted with a voice assistant in the previous week. Most (23.5%) had been looking for information, but a substantial number (18.8%) had used a voice assistant to complete an action.

However, internet users are already more likely to use a voice assistant than to own a smartwatch, smart wristband, or smart home device. Some 22.0% of those polled in H1 2021 had used a voice tool such as Siri or Cortana, or a smart speaker, to search for information during the prior week, and 15.7% had used voice to complete an action or task. Penetration was greater in affluent households.

About 22% of internet users now use voice tools such as Cortana or Siri, or a smart speaker like the Amazon Echo, to find information, such as map directions, and a similar number said they used voice commands to carry out actions. Takeup of voice assistants was greatest in the most affluent homes but also above average in middle-income households and among respondents ages 25 to 34.

Voice assistants fulfil multiple functions, but these vary from country to country. GWI first asked in 2019 about respondents’ use of voice-activated phone apps like Apple’s Siri and Microsoft’s Cortana, and smart speakers, such as the Amazon Echo and Google Home.

Voice assistants and smart speakers introduced a whole new user interface experience to consumers. With Alexa, Amazon led the way in helping users get comfortable with voice-controlled devices in their most intimate spaces. The Alexa team has made user trust core to its development strategy. The challenge: Alexa first entered the home through its Echo and Dot devices.

Though virtually all internet users in Colombia own a smartphone, relatively few to date use voice assistants, such as Siri or Cortana. In total, 14.7% of internet users had accessed such a service in the prior week, to find information, and 18.0% had used voice to complete an action. Uptake was higher in medium- and higher-income homes at about 20% in both cases.