Alexa the Operator

        This week, I read an interesting article over adding a unique new feature to devices, such as Alexa and Siri. This new feature would give these devices the capability to call 911. Virtual assistants, like Alexa and Google Home, are in 70% of homes in the United States, and home security experts have noticed the reliance people have now with these different devices. Since people have become so dependent on asking their devices simple questions like the weather or to play music, these experts are nervous that when there is an emergency, these dependent people won’t be able to access care and security because these devices do not offer that feature.

        The idea is really great, however, there are a few setbacks that have caused designers and manufacturers to hold off on adding this feature into these devices. One of the reasons has to do with GPS. When you call 911, the system is able to get a location of where you are calling from. The designers would have to figure out how to change something in the design of the device in order for it to be able to track the caller. This also leads to another problem, which is the whole 911 call system in itself. There are already technical difficulties in the system when it comes to cell phones calling and texting. If these devices begin calling 911, the whole 911 system would need to be updated and changed. Calling 911 also costs money. These low costs usually end up on your phone bills, but if devices like Alexa and Google Home begin calling, those charges would need to be sent to the manufacturers. If a lot of people begin to use them in this way, the bills pile up and end up costing manufacturers billions of dollars just annually.

        I think that this system would be really beneficial to a lot of people. Like the article said, so many people are dependent on these devices now, it would be another great selling feature. However, I feel like there would be complications when it comes to telling the device to call 911. There are already a lot of accidental calls to 911 now. If all you had to do was speak to Alexa or Google Home and tell them to call 911, I feel like it could sometimes mistakenly call 911 when you don’t want it to. Siri already mistakes a lot of words when you speak to it. This could lead to a lot of accidental calls, more so than now, and this would bring the cost up for the manufacturers even more. I do think it would be a really helpful way for people in emergency situations who can’t reach a phone. I think at some point we will see this feature added to devices like these.