The competitive tension between Google and Amazon appears to have eased with the intervention of JBL. The renowned speaker manufacturer is preparing to launch an innovative series of three devices that will simultaneously support both Alexa and Google Assistant. This integration will allow users to ask Amazon’s voice assistant to play a song and then instruct Google to stop it, thus representing a scenario of collaboration between the two tech giants.

New JBL speakers with voice assistants

At the IFA technology show in Berlin this week, JBL unveiled its latest speaker innovations. Highlights include the JBL Authentics 200 (priced at $329,99), the Authentics 1600 (priced at $500) from Harman, as well as the Authentics 699,99 portable speakers (priced at $3400).

These products are positioned as pioneers in harmonizing the capabilities of Amazon and Google voice assistants, all in a single device. In an interview with The Verge, Aaron Rubenson, Vice President of Alexa, detailed how this integration works.

“[You] can ask Alexa or Google Assistant to stop certain tasks — music that’s playing, a timer that’s going off, an alarm — and the activity will stop, regardless of which assistant actually started that activity.”

Aaron Rubenson

Alexa vs. Google Assistant

• Even though the voice assistants operate on the same device, they remain independent, requiring the user to configure them separately through the dedicated JBL app.
• However, through the Multi-Agent Experience tool, both are mutually aware. For example, if an alarm set by Google Assistant coincides with a song started by Alexa, the speaker's intelligence will understand the need to lower the volume to accommodate both sounds.
• The assistants, however, do not interact with each other. According to Marissa Chacko, Director of Product Management for Google Assistant for Home, as mentioned in an interview with The Verge, an audio focus software prevents any direct communication between Alexa and Google Assistant.
• In a household with multiple voice assistant devices (e.g. a JBL and a physical Alexa device), each device will be configured individually. Once enabled for certain activities, both devices will be able to handle requests, regardless of which assistant initiated the command.

Amazon vs. Google

• The relationship between Google and Amazon has been marked by few successful collaborations. This is evidenced by the incompatibility of the YouTube app on Amazon's Echo Show device and the inability of both companies' music streaming services to operate on their respective speakers.
• However, both companies are apparently moving past this rivalry in favor of advancing their products. An early example of this shift was their collaboration on the development of Matter, a device aimed at the “smart home,” which also involves the participation of other partner companies.
• Now, this new spirit of collaboration extends to voice assistants, directly benefiting users.
• Marissa Chacko highlights that the experience of cooperation with Google was remarkably “fluid”, and this endeavor still represents a “first test”.

How to buy JBL speakers

The JBL speaker models in question are scheduled to debut in the European market on September 15, followed by a North American launch on September 17, available exclusively through the brand's official website.