NEW YORK, DEC 24 — The Wall Street Journal reports that Google is working on a mobile messaging service with an intelligent search assistant which would give a friendly answer to any question asked.

This new tool could tread on the toes of Facebook M, a similar service that is currently in the test phase.

To develop this service, Google is reportedly building on its experience with “Google Now”.

Advertisement

This new intelligent agent will apparently be capable of answering precise questions directly via the messaging service, thereby replacing a search engine.

A chatbot would scan websites and social networks to find answers to the questions asked.

The Wall Street Journal believes that Google has been working on this project for around a year, but no launch date or timeframe for tests is given.

Advertisement

This is an important gamble for Google, which has never really been able to make its mark in mobile messaging with its Hangouts service which is much less popular than WhatsApp, WeChat and Facebook Messenger.

Artificial Intelligence focused on the consumer

On paper the project appears to be reminiscent of Facebook M, an intelligent robot directly integrated into Messenger which is currently in the test phase with some users.

This assistant is not only capable of finding information, using an algorithm, but it can also execute tasks such as making a reservation in a restaurant, canceling an appointment and making online purchases.

The emergence of intelligent assistants in messaging apps is just one more step forward in their development in the mobile sphere.

The main high-tech operators are already offering this type of service to manage your mobile phone, e.g., Google Now, Microsoft’s Cortana and Apple’s Siri. — AFP-Relaxnews