‘Bixby’ assistant might be just what Samsung needs
Rumors of a new digital helper inside its next phone could help erase memories of the Note 7 debacle
OK, Google. Hey, Siri. NEW YORK What’s up, Bixby?
Bixby doesn’t have the name recognition of Apple’s Siri or the Google Assistant. That might change if rumors suggesting that a digital assistant called Bixby will be the new AI-infused helper inside Samsung ’s next big flagship phone prove correct.
Samsung is expected to unveil the smartphone, presumably the Galaxy S8, in March, though the South Korean tech giant could tease its arrival later this month during the Mobile World Congress tech confab in Barcelona.
One thing that’s obvious: Samsung can’t aim the spotlight on a new phone fast enough, not after the pricey and embarrassing battery-gate debacle that was the Galaxy Note 7. Samsung recently cited design and manufacturing flaws from two unnamed suppliers as the reason some lithiumion batteries inside the phones caught fire.
Whether it is called Bixby or something else, it appears a fresh voice-driven AI assistant will be one of the banner features inside Samsung ’s new phone, hardly surprising given the race to raise the IQs for such brainy digital assistants.
Among the outstanding questions is whether Bixby will build on Samsung’s existing (and frank- ly underwhelming) S-Voice feature, leverage the conversational-based voice technology from Viv Labs, a start-up the company bought in October, or apply some combination of the two.
I’ve certainly been impressed by early demos of Viv, which was founded by Siri co-creator Dag Kittlaus. But demos are demos, and the tech must prove itself in real-world use.
Equally unknown is how a user might summon Bixby. There could be a dedicated button for such a purpose, or perhaps you’ll bark out wake words along the lines of “OK, Google” and “Hey, Siri.”
Samsung remains mum publicly on Bixby or other features that might be coming to its latest flagship, but there’s certainly no shortage of rumors.
The likelihood is that you’ll see not one but two new S8 models, with the larger of the pair push- ing screen size well past 6 inches. Samsung ’s playbook through the past several iterations of the series has been to introduce a standard Galaxy S model and a Galaxy S version model with a secondary curved edge display. Citing unnamed sources, The
Wall Street Journal says there will only be curved display models this time around, albeit in the different screen sizes.
The Journal also said that the fingerprint scanner that’s currently on the home button could be moved to the back of the phone. We’ll see.
Whatever features end up in a final product, the S8 launch is critical to Samsung. Coming off the Note 7, Samsung must change the narrative on its mobile business.
What’s more, arch-rival Apple is expected to up its own game later in the year, when it launches the 10-year anniversary edition of the iPhone.