It seems that Cortana, Microsoft’s digital assistant, and Siri’s rival, will no longer be exclusive to Windows Phones. During a recent press gathering, Julie Larson-Green, Microsoft’s Applications and Services Group Chief Experience Officer, told a small selected group of journalists that the company will be bringing Cortana to Android and iOS.
According to Business Insider, when Julie Larson-Green was asked if Cortana would eventually arrive in other operating systems, she said: “The short answer is, yeah”, and no more details were offered. But looking into recent moves where Microsoft is offering Office for iOS and Android, it’s clearly a signal that the company is now more open than before to bring as many tools and services to different platforms.
Cortana officially debuted with Windows Phone 8.1 on selected markets, but Microsoft is already expanding its digital assistant to different regions of the world. Furthermore, the company proactively releases new updates at least twice per month to make its digital assistant smarter.
We also know that the software giant is planning to bring Cortana to Windows and there are previous evidences that Microsoft is already testing the digital assistant in Windows 10.
Although we don’t know for sure when Microsoft plans to release Cortana for iOS and Android, it’s interesting to hear, that you’ll have an alternative to Siri for iPhone and iPad, and for Google Now on Android devices.
Update: In support of this article, I’ve also found words from Mary Jo Foley, a long-time Microsoft watcher, supporting the plan of Microsoft saying that Cortana will arrive on Android and iOS. (link)
Source Business Insider