Microsoft is going to incorporate Alexa into Cortana

Alexa and Cortana are ready to get along. "Conversely, you'll be able to access Cortana on Alexa-enabled devices like the Amazon Echo, Echo Dot and Echo Show", Microsoft's Andrew Shuman said in an official blog post.

- Picture courtesy of Amazon IncSAN FRANCISCO, Aug 31 -Amazon's Alexa and Microsoft's Cortana will start talking to each other in a first of its kind alliance of rival digital assistants, the companies said yesterday.

Those betting big on AI making voice the dominant user interface of the future are not betting so big as to believe their respective artificially intelligent voice assistants will be the sole vocal oracle that Internet users want or need. Thanks to this new working partnership, you could merely use your PC to tell Cortana to have Alexa set the Nest to a designated temperature. Similarly, Cortana customers can ask Alexa to control their smart home devices, shop on Amazon.com, interact with numerous more than 20,000 skills built by third-party developers, and much more.

"Ensuring Cortana is available for our customers everywhere and across any device is a key priority for us", said Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, in a press release Wednesday.

Cortana will be bringing its voice assistant skills to Alexa's deep integration with Amazon. "Together, their strengths will complement each other and provide customers with a richer and even more helpful experience".

While Amazon introduced voice-controlled Alexa with its Echo speakers in 2014, Google launched Assistant on its Google Home speakers past year.

The move signifies a major shift for the competitive and crowded voice assistant market, which also includes Apple's Siri and Google Assistant.

Alexa and Cortana will be able to talk to each other starting later this year.

Google's Home Assistant is one of many offerings by tech companies looking to break into the smart home industry.

Amazon and Microsoft don't have the only virtual assistants gathering attention at IFA, however. Apple introduced Siri-powered HomePod in June this year.