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Apple
Siri x Oprah
2022Delivered Siri’s first interaction with another celebrity or character, helping frame Siri’s positioning from a robotic agent to an entity with relationships to the physical world.
Siri’s changing persona and position in the world.For years, the Siri design team has received requests both internally and externally to incorporate new voices, celebrities, and even to promote Apple features. None of the many requests had felt right and at the same time, we knew the landscape was changing. Alexa was heavily leaning into the interaction and it was palpable that users began to view voice agents as more than just a robotic personal assistant or information retriever. People were more comfortable speaking to agents in long-form, warm speech. This was back in 2022, the relationship between agent and human has shifted drastically since.
New voice patternsI worked with our Siri writing team to define Siri’s new relationship to the world. Siri is no longer a robotic agent in its own silo, but an entity who builds relationships with others. Oprah was a no-brainer first-choice in introducing Siri’s shifting persona.
A few new voice patterns and Siri positioning we defined:
1. Siri is capable of having external relationships and have its likes and dislikes
2. Only family-friendly characters and celebrities will be considered
3. Omit talent from speaking phrases like “our country” for localization purposes
Oprah is just the best ✨