Reuters reported on Friday that Microsoft is readying its own virtual assistant, Cortana, to take a run at Siri on her own home turf. Microsoft reportedly plans to bring Cortana to the iOS and Android platforms later this year.
Reuters notes that the new iteration of Cortana would double-down on her being less reactive, akin to iOS users needing to instigate Siri commands themselves, and more proactive.
Cortana, named after the virtual assistant character in the popular Xbox game, Halo, could plan an entire trip to the airport, prepping bearding passes, checking for traffic and flight delays, and more, simply from reading emails related to the trip.
“This kind of technology, which can read and understand email, will play a central role in the next roll out of Cortana, which we are working on now for the fall time frame,” said Eric Horvitz, managing director of Microsoft Research and a part of the Einstein project, in an interview at the company’s Redmond, Washington, headquarters.
The move hasn’t been officially confirmed by Microsoft. However, such a move would greatly expand Cortana’s exposure and user base, as she is currently available only on the Windows mobile platform. Microsoft will include Cortana as a feature in its upcoming Windows 10 desktop operating system.
