Specifically, the digital assistant can collect your office location data by traversing through your profile or contacts lists and give an appropriate response. For the second question, Cortana may need permission to access your location. The virtual assistant also provides personalized responses to queries such as ‘what is the humidity outside ?’ or ‘how far is the downtown supermarket from my office?’.
However, in case of more complex questions, Cortana turns to the web browser and displays a list of results that you can take a look at and find the answer. Responses for easy questions pop up immediately as results on the search window. What’s the temperature outside right now?Ĭortana is designed to use the Bing search engine to answer general, factual, and statistical queries.For example, on the command prompt, you can enter the following questions and allow Cortana to respond: Also, typing the question in the Cortana window can activate it. You can turn on Cortana with the voice activation command ‘Hey Cortana’. For example, if the location tracker is turned on for Cortana, it implies that the digital assistant is allowed to access your location.Ĭortana can be activated by enabling voice settings or clicking the Cortana button on the Windows 10 and subsequent operating systems. Moreover, you can also manage permission settings that decide whether Cortana is allowed to access certain data, files, or apps. You can use Cortana by enabling the speech and typing settings on your system. See More: What Is a Decision Tree? Algorithms, Template, Examples, and Best Practices How Does Cortana Work?Ĭortana is similar to Apple’s Siri, which processes natural language to perform simple tasks for users, such as setting calendar events, performing mathematical calculations, carrying out temperature and currency conversions, etc. To sum up, Cortana performs well when it knows its users better. Reads and learns from texts, emails, images, or videos.Uses search engines and cloud computing features.Keeps track of user behavior, habits, and interaction patterns.Moreover, it indulges in intelligent conversations with users rather than just referring to a stored set of questions and answers.Ĭortana achieves seamless human-computer interaction by analyzing the semantics and contexts of the conversations. It is capable of understanding user preferences, likes, dislikes, and habits over time. What’s the synonym of analyze?, What is the length of the Great Wall of China?, What’s the latitude and longitude of San Francisco?, and so on, are examples of questions that can be asked.įundamentally, Cortana operates on the foundations of machine learning and artificial intelligence. You can just type-in or ask your questions and get immediate responses without the need for any intervention. It comes in handy when you intend to save time on redundant tasks that machines can accomplish on their own. The voice of that character is also the voice of the personal assistant, which has been provided by voice actress Jen Taylor.Ĭortana typically serves as a dictionary, thesaurus, or encyclopedia to its users. The name Cortana is inspired from the fictional AI character that is a part of Microsoft’s video game series ‘Halo’. The voice- and text-enabled assistant works with the Microsoft 365 product suite and supports the Microsoft Edge browser. However, later on, the digital assistant was integrated with other Windows devices and operating systems such as Windows 10 and 11, Android, iOS, and the Xbox One System software. It uses the Bing search engine to accomplish a variety of tasks such as answering user questions, sending emails, managing calendars, setting appointments and reminders, opening applications, showing weather conditions, tracking flights and travel packages, etc.Ĭortana was first released in 2014 and was originally designed for Windows Phone 8.1. Cortana is an AI-based virtual assistant developed by Microsoft that operates via text and voice commands.