Alexa Takes Fight With Siri to Marriott Hotel Rooms

Amazon’s battle with  Apple over digital assistants is moving to a new venue: hotel rooms, where Alexa and Siri are both vying to be the voice-controlled platform of choice for travelers, according to Bloomberg.

Marriott, the world’s biggest lodging company, is testing devices from the two tech giants at its Aloft hotel in Boston to determine which is best to let guests turn on lights, close drapes, control room temperature and change television channels via voice command. In December, Wynn Resorts became the first hotel company to install Alexa-powered Echo devices, starting with suites.

Technology companies are using hotel rooms as showrooms for new services and devices that can also control so-called smart homes. Amazon and Apple are competing for dominance in the nascent market, which promises to let consumers access and manage household systems such as heating, cooling, lighting and entertainment by speaking a request at home or using a smartphone from afar.

Marriott expects to decide whether to adopt the technology for one or more of its chains as early as mid-year, potentially boosting sales for the device of choice. More important, it will increase the winning company’s exposure in the market for voice-activated devices, which are gaining more mainstream traction.

A key question is whether the interaction will be personalized, allowing guests familiar with the devices to log into their own accounts, or instead use a standard set of skills relevant to a hotel stay, like getting news reports, checking weather forecasts or calling for an Uber, commands more appropriate for those unfamiliar with the technology.