SoundHound AI and Perplexity Partner to Enable Large Language Models in Next-Generation Voice Assistants

SoundHound AI, a pioneer in voice artificial intelligence, announced that it has partnered with Perplexity, the conversational AI-powered answer engine. Together the two companies plan to bring Perplexity’s online Large Language Models (LLM) capabilities to SoundHound Chat AI – a new generation of voice assistant that utilizes hundreds of real-time domains, as well as generative AI responses.

SoundHound announced the expansion of its Houndify Voice AI platform to 22 languages — covering a majority of the world's common languages. The expansion allows developers to add conversational intelligence to their products and services for users across the globe. The company also announced plans to add over 100 languages and variations as part of its commitment to provide the most comprehensive voice AI solution to brands and users everywhere.

For the past 20 years, Nuance Communications, the voice recognition pioneer that was once Dragon Systems and ScanSoft, has been building deep domain expertise across verticals such as healthcare or retail. Now focusing on conversational AI and building AI‑powered solutions that amplify human intelligence, Nuance has announced the acquisition of Saykara, a like-minded startup focused on developing a mobile AI assistant to automate clinical documentation for physicians.

Voice AI developer SoundHound confirmed the integration of its Houndify Voice AI platform into the all-new 2021 Elantra and Elantra Hybrid models from the Korean manufacturer, now available for sale in North America. Hyundai's new Dynamic Voice Recognition System is powered by Houndify's Speech-to-Meaning and Deep Meaning Understanding technologies, providing drivers with voice access to cloud-based information and services hands-free.

Universal Electronics (UEI), a company specializing in universal control and sensing technologies for the smart home, announced a collaboration with Microsoft to launch a new digital assistant platform for the home built on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform using AI and IoT services. The UEI’s Nevo Butler turnkey smart home hub with nevo.ai built-in digital assistant will be launched at CES 2019 and will be available as a white-label solution for other manufacturers.