At an event in New York, Dag Kittlaus and Adam Cheyer, two developers who helped created Apple’s Siri digital assistant showed off a new platform called Viv. The product of four years of work, Viv uses more advanced artificial intelligence to retrieve answers to queries from a wide variety of Web and mobile apps.
Unlike other digital assistants, which are hard-coded to perform specific tasks, Viv can actually write its own programs in order to respond to specific requests. The platform is also much more open than Siri or Google Now, allowing mobile development pros to create new experiences for users.
“Viv is designed to be devices agnostic — think one platform, open to all services, for all devices, personalized for you. Viv’s goal is to be ubiquitous so it will understand your preferences and history as you engage with it on your mobile device, or in your car, or with your smart device at home,” said Adam Koopersmith, a Viv investor. “Our sense is there will be a move away from having hundreds of different apps that act independently. These services will be integrated into everyday life. Viv will be the platform to enable it.”
