[Claire Cain Miller][1]:
> In the future, Google could answer more complicated questions, Mr. Gomes said, like “How far is it from here to the Eiffel Tower?” and “Where could I go to a concert in warm weather next year?”
I wanted to link to this and simply post a screenshot of Siri providing the answer to the first question. It didn’t work. Siri couldn’t parse that original question, instead telling me my location. The second question prompted a straight web search.
It’s clear to me that this is where search is headed, and it’s also clear that this is exactly the kind of search/task that Siri was made to do.
So the question really is: who builds a reliable product first?
Google has an obvious edge given the sheer power of their search tool and the data they have backing it up.
What I wouldn’t do is count Apple out. Because while Siri isn’t always great, Apple has no problem partnering with people like Yelp, OpenTable, Wolfram|Alpha, and so on to get the data that they need to make a better product.
Apple will build what they need, but only if they actually have to build it, whereas Google will always build what they need because they desire to own all the information.
That’s an odd role reversal for the two companies.
[1]: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/04/technology/as-web-search-goes-mobile-apps-chip-at-googles-lead.html
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