The Android ecosystem has long been at the forefront of the web’s collective intelligence with the Google Now platform, the tech giant’s mobile-focused virtual assistant that collects information from the web, and the “Knowledge Graph,” — a knowledge database that Google’s engineers and developers have developed to enhance its search results.
But for Microsoft, Android is a big playing field, and its market share can still accommodate another virtual assistant.
On Friday, at The Verge, Microsoft’s Cortana running on an Android phone was revealed.
In case you’re wondering, Cortana is the software giant’s intelligent virtual assistant. It is Microsoft’s answer to Siri and Google Now.
Tom Warren of the Vox-owned tech site has leaked several images showing the Cortana app for Android running on the HTC One M9. It works like Cortana on Windows Phone, Warren claims, although the “hey Cortana” feature which can wake the phone up is missing.
Warren and other tech sites have downloaded the “apk” (or the Cortana for Android installer) from a French website.
Cortana on Android can search the web, but with Bing as the default search engine. It can also scan the phone owner’s events list, find establishments near the user, fetch the latest weather data, read the news, and others. (See it in action, and a Google Now comparison in the video below from the Android Authority.)
It’s no secret that Microsoft is bringing Cortana to Android to boost Bing’s mobile search market share. However, Google Now is deeply integrated in Android’s backend. It is unavoidable, and just a “tap or swipe away.” Like the Bing Search app on Android (link to Google Play Store) it’s not hard to imagine that Android users will still choose Google Now over Cortana.
Cortana for Android will play a small part in Satya Nadella’s “mobile first, cloud first” strategy that highlights Microsoft’s application ecosystem. It is taking advantage of Android and iOS market shares that the Windows Phone cannot reach.
This apps-filled ecosystem is running alongside Microsoft’s small Windows Mobile operating system with an April 2015 market share of just 3 percent according to comScore.
