When voice biometrics goes mainstream it will be on the coattails of several burgeoning phenomena that are on display in Las Vegas at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). As noted in this article by Chris Preimesberger of eWeek, Shawn DuBravac, chief economist of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), believes that biometrics in general has reached a “tipping point.” Indeed biometric sensors have made possible a “connected pacifier” that reports a baby’s vital signs, a “smart baby bottle” for parents to keep track of their child’s food consumption and quoting the article directly: “bras, socks and headbands that analyze brain waves, heart rates and sweat levels to help detect early signs of disease or determine a wearer’s level of concentration.”

The CEA credits general acceptance of the proliferation of inexpensive sensors as one of the key drivers. It is matched by the discovery of viable use cases across healthcare, banking and finance, retailing and enterprise security. The third leg of the stool (to prevent the move from “tipping point” to “tipping over”, I guess) is the arrival of standards to support acceptance of biometrics for authentication and security applications across several devices, businesses and use cases. This is yet another case where the efforts of the FIDO (Fast ID Online) is making its presence felt.

Voice, like its biometric cousins, is finding greater visibility at CES. “Start the car,” was a “show stopper” application and use case that incorporates AGNITiO‘s small footprint KIVOX Mobile 5.0 embedded voice biometric engine into any mobile device and immediately makes it a context-aware tool for both security and personalization. AGNITiO’s CEO Emilio Martinez expects the new mobile engine, with low power consumption needs and a small footprint, to revolutionize mobile authentication. He showcased how it supports either fixed phrases or “free speech” for authentication, while storing both the voiceprints and the authentication engine on the device.

Nuance used CES to show how its Dragon Drive Mobile can take drivers several steps further into their car based experience. Positioned as a “bridge between smartphones and each car’s infotainment system, the app gives drivers or, in some cases, passengers) hands-free control over navigation systems, podcasts or music selections. At CES, Nuance took the opportunity to show how incorporating voice biometrics into the mix will enable drivers or passengers to invoke their personal selections and experience by activating the system with a pre-selected passphrase. Dragon Mobile gives them control over navigation, “points of interest” (POI), music selections, calendar information, general dictation and other voice control.

Voice-based personalization will be especially useful for drivers who take advantage of the newly introduced Dragon Drive Daily Update, which Nina-like personal assistant service that delivers highly-relevant content to the driver. The Dragon Drive Mobile app runs on both Android and iOS based smartphones and is designed to support the same experience whether it is invoked through the phone or through the onboard control center (“head unit”) of a connected car. Thus Nuance differentiates itself from Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto.

In one other instance of voice biometrics-based security, three-year-old authentication and encryption specialist Nxt-ID introduced Wocket, an electronic wallet that is secured by a combination of patented technologies and a voiceprint. With the ability to store information from multiple payment cards, as well as documents and loyalty cards, it is an interesting example of a secure personal information vault that is highly secure… thanks to voice biometrics.

Categories: Intelligent Authentication

Tags: Voice biometrics, Nuance, Android, iOs, Agnitio, Connected Car, CES, Personal digital assistant