While Apple and Google's AI voice assistants Siri and Google Assistant have male and female voices, Amazon's Alexa voice assistant has had a feminine voice for years. However, according to reports, the company has begun to roll out a new manly voice for its AI-based assistant. In addition, a new wake word has been added to provide users more alternatives for waking the assistant.
Alexa’s New Male Voice
According to The Verge, Amazon included the additional male voice option when it announced the new celebrity voices of Shaq and Melissa McCarthy a few days ago. However, users were unaware of it until it was spotted by The Ambient. A sample of the new male voice can be heard right here.
“Ziggy”: New Wake Word
Amazon has also included a new wake word to activate the voice assistant, in addition to the new male voice option. The new word "Ziggy" joins the ranks of previous wake words including "Computer," "Echo," "Amazon," and, of course, "Alexa." It's worth noting, though, that Ziggy isn't primarily associated with male voices. Instead, users can assign the assistant any voice gender and any of the above wake words to it.
Additionally, the new wake word could be a response to Amazon's recent backlash over the name of their voice assistant. If you're unaware, numerous parents of girls named Alexa recently complained to the media that their children were being mistreated at school because of their name. As a result, Amazon probably added the wake word for its voice assistant to fix the problems.
Users can choose between female and male voice options, dubbed “Original” and “New,” respectively, by Amazon. Simply say "Change your voice" to the voice assistant. They can also modify the wake word by telling the assistance, "Change your wake word."
Now, let's discuss the availability of a new male voice and the new wake word. According to sources, they are currently exclusively available in the United States. In the following days, Amazon plans to expand the new voice options to other countries.
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