Adobe released the findings from its latest survey into use of voice technology. At this stage in the development of AI assistants, the trend appears to be that voice controls can be useful and offer benefits, the technology comes with a steep learning curve that is limiting uptake.
Nearly all voice users in Adobe’s survey (94%) said that voice technology is easy to use and improves quality of life. However, that is paired with more than half of respondents noting that voice technology’s use is not intuitive and 49% stating they don’t know where to begin to accomplish a task.
Most users application of voice commands remain limited to simple requests, such as playing music, checking the weather, or asking for directions. Most respondents said they wouldn’t use voice platforms for more complicated or sensitive tasks such as banking or booking travel.
The survey found an even split in opinion on the temperament of voice AI. Just over half (51%) said AI should have human-like attributes such as humor or sympathy, while 49% did not want those characteristics.
Half of users also said that voice recognition has been a top challenging in using this technology. The respondents said that voice AI understands them and is accurate with responses about 69% of the time.
Adobe found that smartphones are still the most common hardware for using voice assistants, with an 85% response rate. Smart speakers took a 39% share. A large majority of participants (80%) said devices that blended voice and screens would offer the biggest variety of tasks.