Siri can't beat Google search (yet)

By , ITworld |  Cloud Computing, Gene Munster, Google

Piper Jaffray Analyst Gene Munster grades Google accuracy as B+ but Siri gets a D.

Munster (or staff) asked Siri 1,600 questions, and Fortune reported on the results. 800 questions were asked in a quiet room, while the other 800 were asked on a busy street in Minneapolis to test Siri's voice recognition. Of course, Google Search gets 100 percent recognition since the users typed in the questions.

Believing "Siri must match or surpass Google's accuracy" to become a viable mobile search alternative, Munster does expect Siri to improve. "With the iOS 6 release in the fall, we expect Siri to improve meaningfully while reducing its reliance on Google from 60 percent to 48 percent." Yes, Siri currently gets 60 percent of its answers from Google.

Siri fans

I'll take a search that's 60% accurate if I don't have to key in over one that's 100% accurate that requires a keyboard in many, many situations.
The CW on

It's true, it won't do everything you ask it to do, but then neither do my kids or employees. I look forward to the many new things SIRI will do in IOS 6.
joeldm on

For a phone to correctly answer a question as specific as "What spices are in Lasagna"? is BIG step.
ScottDooley on

Siri is more than just search, it is articifical intelligence that has never been put on a computer the size of a phone, until iPhone 4S came along. Bravo!
apppletini on


The statistics presented and the comparison between keyed entry (google) and voice entry (apple) leave me to say it a B vs a B+ narrowly giving the apple to oranges edge to Google.
Talung Tue on

Wasn't the super-awesome Woz the one who said that Apple ruined Siri after they bought it?
Angel Ham on

Flawed premise

I see users turning to Siri when they cannot direct their attention to the screen yet need to perform some specific task: place a call, let's say, or find directions.
KitFR on

You look at the Apple website about Siri and it says it is still in Beta testing, which means they are still working on it.
rodediaz23 on

This research is FLAWED right from the start. First, the comparison involved Siri (a voice activated search) and Google Search (a typewritten search). These two are completely differently platforms.
DigitalENZO on

Is this a fair test, Siri versus Google Search? Why do you think it is or isn't fair?


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