Apple reportedly buys a voice AI start-up to help Siri

Technology from a newly revealed Apple acquisition could go toward improving the voice-controlled assistant Siri, according to a Bloomberg report.

Apple has acquired Voysis, a start-up based in Dublin, Ireland, that has offered a platform for voice artificial intelligence, the report says. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Voysis has targeted its technology to businesses that are looking to enhance their shopping apps with voice control, Bloomberg reported. The start-up’s “intelligent voice systems” can provide businesses with “rich, natural language interactions between their brands and users,” according to an archived page on the Voysis website, which has now been removed.

“Combined with your data, our platform understands what your customers say,” another archived page from the site says.

The natural-language technology from the acquisition could be tapped to improve Siri, the voice-controlled assistant built into Apple devices including the iPhone. By many measures, Siri has lagged behind Amazon’s Alexa and the Google Assistant when it comes to AI capabilities.

Founded in 2012, Voysis had announced an $8m Series A round in 2017, which was led by Polaris Partners.