Google Assistant gets native SDK to attract developers

Google has planned the expansion of the Google Assistant by launching its SDK. The latest move by the search giant is aimed at building an artificial intelligence (AI) powered ecosystem that is not just limited to Google apps and services and is also open to all developers.

“With this SDK, you can now start building your own hardware prototypes that include the Google Assistant, like a self-built robot or a voice-enabled smart mirror,” wrote Chris Ramsdale, product manager of Google Assistant, in a blog post.

The SDK comes bundled with a gRPC API, a Python-based open source client that handles authentication and access to the API, samples and documentation. Also, there are bindings for languages such as Java, Python, C#, Node.js and Ruby.

The cross-language support empowers the Google Assistant SDK to enable prototyping on hardware ranging from a smartphone or tablet to a Raspberry Pi 3.

Although Google has precisely provided most of the major features of the Assistant through the SDK, it still does not have the core hot word support. The engineering team at Google is also in development to bring about companion app integration.

Having said that, the initial

SDK release is enough to influence developers to build new experiences for the Google Assistant. It could counter Apple’s Siri and Microsoft’s Cortana, over time.

You can check the features on the developer preview by downloading the Google Assistant SDK. A GitHub repository has also emerged to let you start developing your projects using the new offering.