Sneak Peek Of Microsoft’s Siri Competitor Cortana Leaks

It’s no secret that Microsoft has a competitor brewing for Apple’s Siri, and to a lesser extent Google Now, but Cortana is inching ever closer to becoming something you can actually use on your Windows Phone. According to “sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans”, The Verge outed some sneak peek pics of what Cortana will look like as well as some of her (“its”?) functionality.

First, the digital assistant will appear as a circular animated icon, not as a tech version of a manic pixie dream girl (which is probably for the best), and Cortana will address users by name. Much of the information pertinent to the user experience will be saved in a “notebook” that includes location data, personal data, contact info, and so on, and Cortana can also pull in information from emails to help craft more meaningful reminders. Data will be culled from Bing, Foursquare, and other services, too.


And of course, Cortana will “learn” more about each user to tailor the experience further.


The look of Cortana is subtle, in keeping with the overall look of Windows Phone; that circular icon is just enough to let you know that it’s working without dominating the screen. As you can see from the images, you can tweak Cortana’s settings to let her access more or less of your information, change the name she uses to address you, turn Cortana suggestions on or off, and more.


It’s expected that Microsoft will reveal Cortana in full at the BUILD conference April 2-4th.