Aura: Artificial Intelligence speaks in Spanish


Aura: Artificial Intelligence speaks in Spanish



Telefónica presents Movistar Home, a voice-controlled assistant equipped with Aura connected to all devices | Vodafone teams up with Samsung to provide a home monitoring service based on IoT



    The operators have the focus on the potential of connected households. There are currently 62 million devices connected to the Internet, but it is projected that by 2020 they will be 290 million. In addition, 1.3 million new connections are produced per month. In this context, Telefónica presented its Movistar Home, a smart device for the home equipped with Aura, on Sunday at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.


Its objective is to be the center of connection of all the devices in the home so that users can manage their services. It will be equipped with a second screen, they will make calls and control the television with the voice. Movistar Home will be launched in Spain this fall.

What is Aura? In last year's edition of the MWC, Telefónica already explained its commitment to a platform that would integrate Big Data, the Internet of Things, the 5G and Artificial Intelligence, but this year they have taken the impulse to make it a reality. Thus, the operator announced on Sunday the launch of Aura, its digital assistant with artificial intelligence that wants to transform the way in which customers relate to the brand and how they manage their digital life.


    This first version is launched today in six countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Germany, United Kingdom and, of course, Spain. It reaches customers through the mobile app and other third-party channels such as Facebook, Google and Microsoft, although not yet in all countries. Aura thus becomes the first Telefónica product that uses the Fourth Platform. Its operation is based on learning after the collection of customer data to respond to their requests and make recommendations for rate changes, for example. Aura arrives in Spain with the Movistar + Habla application.

For the moment, the service only allows you to communicate with the network in real time to ask about your bill, the services contracted, the use of data and other content of the style. The most remarkable thing is that Aura "soon" will be integrated with Google Assistant and with Microsoft Cortana in 2019.

"One year ago we said that Artificial Intelligence (AI) was the basis of the relationship with our customers and now we fulfill our promise", assured the president of Telefónica, José María Ávarez-Pallete, during the launch event within the framework of the MWC of Barcelona. For his part, the head of Data of the company, Chema Alonso, stressed that "this is only the beginning because Aura will continue to grow with new capabilities and transform the way in which we relate to customers."

Households monitored: security and connectivity
 
For its part, Vodafone announced this Sunday in the framework of MWC its alliance with Samsung for the launch of V-Home, a home monitoring service that through the connection of all objects gives customers "peace of mind and security".

According to a study conducted by Vodafone, individual homes are more secure and more connected, but 67% of the population lives in flats in Spain. In addition, there are 3.6 million homes that are second homes. That is why it is "so important" to be able to control what happens in homes. "Customers want to monitor and know what happens in their home live", explained Blanca Echaniz, responsible for Products and Innovation of Vodafone.


The service consists of several devices developed by both brands. The most important is Hub, a compact device similar to a router that gives connectivity to all objects in the home. Also a video camera with night vision, a multisensor that measures temperature or opening of doors and windows; and a siren that can be configured.

Echaniz wanted to make clear that this service is not a security alarm like those that exist in the market, but "we give the client the devices and the power so that he himself manages that monitoring of his home".

Although they have not given specific prices, they have revealed that the monthly fee when hiring this service will be "below 10 euros" and the necessary devices for monitoring "below 300 euros". The service has been launched first in Spain but its launch "soon" in Germany is planned because it is a global agreement between both companies. A customer other than Vodafone may also use this service, although through "a different subscription".

Celestino García, vice president of Samsung Spain, has assured that this is "an open ecosystem" because "there is no manufacturer that has all the answers to all the demands that the consumer has" in the IoT world. In addition, it has revealed that its commitment for 2019 is that the 700 million devices produced in its factories per year can be supported by IoT connectivity. "This is a tremendously rapid silent revolution that we are experiencing."

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