Curious to see the communities response to this. In my small part of the world, I have seen many co-workers/friends/families jump on the Amazon Echo/Dot bandwagon this holiday. Because 40 bucks is not that much for a last minute gift I have seen many people venture out and get an Amazon Dot. Some are testing the waters of home automation and seeing how well the Dot works before investing money into lights or something similar.
Being a fan of the new Microsoft, I see this as a disturbing trend and foresee their entry into AI as very daunting based on the perception that familiarity breeds content. With Amazon already a leg up what features would Microsoft need to be able to sway a customer base who sees Microsoft and thinks “problems” based on their past track record?