Boom time ahead for smart speakers
Industry insiders predict the smart speaker market will evolve rapidly in the next few years, with more devices featuring display screens, which are gaining traction among some of the biggest tech players.
Domestic tech giants are now betting on screen-enabled smart speakers. Chinese internet search giant Baidu Inc unveiled its first smart speaker featuring a built-in touch screen, powered by DuerOS, its conversational artificial intelligence technology similar to Amazon's digital assistant Alexa.
Priced at 599 yuan ($95.7), the smart speaker has a seven-inch screen to display additional information after it is asked a question. It also has a camera, with which it can supposedly recognize its owner's face and customize its answers accordingly.
