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Google opens access to its speech recognition API

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Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#131

Post by kuschku »

z3t4 wrote: post #130

At least offer a self hosted version. Maybe it's just me, but I'm not comfortable sending every spoken word to Google.

Exactly this.

Especially because Google's version is trained with illegally obtained user data (no, changing your ToS doesn't allow you to use previously collected data for new purposes in the EU).

We, as a society, should discuss if software trained on user data should be required to be available to those who have provided that data. If for software developed by training neural networks even any copyright can exist — or if it's by definition public domain.

Software trained with neural networks provides an immense advantage for existing monopolies, and makes it extremely hard for competitors.

If this trend continues, startups will become impossible for software that depends on being trained with huge datasets.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#132

Post by sebak »

ytjohn wrote: post #36
hardwaresofton wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, CMUSphinx and Julius: http://cmusphinx.sourceforge.net/ http://julius.osdn.jp/en_index.php It is amazingly easy to create speech recognition without going out to any API these days.

I first learned about CMUSphinx from the [Jasper Project]( https://jasperproject.github.io/ ). While Jasper provided an image for the Pi, I decided to go ahead and make a scripted install of CMUSphinx. I spent something like 2 frustrating days attempting to get it installed by hand in a repeatable fashion before giving up. This was 2 years ago, so maybe it's simple now, but I didn't find it "amazingly easy" back then…

Unfortunately, the situation hasn't improved much. Besides, even if you get it set up, the quality of the recognition isn't even close to the one from Google.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#133

Post by kuschku »

ar7hur wrote: post #82
hardik988 wrote: post #81

Tangentially related: Does anyone remember the name of this startup/service that was on HN (I believe), that enables you to infer actions from plaintext. Eg: "Switch on the lights" becomes {"action": "switch_on", "thing" : "lights" } etc.. I'm trying really hard to remember the name but it escapes me. Speech recognition and will go very well together.

Our service Wit.ai (YC W14) does just that. Demo: https://labs.wit.ai/demo/index.html

Which languages does your service support?

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#134

Post by kuschku »

j1vms wrote: post #72

I would say that Google's main goal here is in expanding their training data set, as opposed to creating a new revenue stream. If it hurts competitors (e.g. Nuance) that might only be a side-effect of that main objective, and likely they will not aim to hurt the competition intentionally. As others here have pointed out, the value now for GOOG is in building the best training data-set in the business, as opposed to j…

And it opens up legal questions

Like if neural networks trained with user data should be un-copyrightable, and public domain by default.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#135

Post by kuschku »

amelius wrote: post #52
cryptoz wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Speech recognition can occur either locally or on Google's servers. Since about 2012 [1], Android has been able to do some types of speech recognition, like dictation, on local devices. Additionally, Google Research has recently expanded on this functionality and it seems like much more of the speech recognition will be done locally [2]. [1] http://www.androidcentral.com/jelly-bean-brings-offline-voic... [2] http://w…

> always-on-google-ai-gives-android-voice-recognition-that-works-on-or-offline Since Android is open-source, would that mean that the voice recognition software (and/or trained coefficients) could, in principle, be ported to Linux?

> since Android is Open Source

You haven't used Android since 2010, have you?

In the latest versions, there is no more Open Source anything.

Calendar, Contacts, Home screen, Phone app, Search, are all closed source now.

(btw, all of them, including the Google app, used to be open in Gingerbread)

You can't do TLS without going through Google apps (or packaging spongycastle), you can't do OpenGL ES 3.2, you can't use location anymore, nor use WiFi for your own location implementation.

Since Marshmallow, you are also forced to use Google Cloud Messaging, or the device will just prevent your app from receiving notifications.

To "save battery power" and "improve usability", Google monopolized all of Android.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#136

Post by IshKebab »

chetatkinsdiet wrote: post #96
hardwaresofton wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, CMUSphinx and Julius: http://cmusphinx.sourceforge.net/ http://julius.osdn.jp/en_index.php It is amazingly easy to create speech recognition without going out to any API these days.

As someone who's worked with a lot of these engines, Nuance and IBM are the only really high quality players in the space. CMUSphinx and Julius are fine for low volume operations where you don't need really accurate response rates, but if you want high accuracy neither comes close from my experience.

As someone who has actually done objective tests, Google are by far the best, Nuance are a clear second. IBM Watson is awful though. Actually the worst I've tested.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#137

Post by IshKebab »

BorisEm wrote: post #20
blennon wrote: post #5

This is HUGE in my opinion. Prior to this, in order to get near state-of-the-art speech recognition in your system/application you either had to have/hire expertise to build your own or pay Nuance a significant amount of money to use theirs. Nuance has always been a "big bad" company in my mind. If I recall correctly, they've sued many of their smaller competitors out of existence and only do expensive enterprise dea…

Other "state-of-the-art" speech recognition solutions already exist. For example, Microsoft has been offering it through its Project Oxford service. https://www.projectoxford.ai/speech

But Google's is by far the best.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#138

Post by TorKlingberg »

zkirill wrote: post #17

I came across CMU Sphnix speech recognition library ( http://cmusphinx.sourceforge.net ) that has a BSD-style license and they just released a big update last month. It supports embedded and remote speech recognition. Could be a nice alternative for someone who may not need all of the bells and whistles and prefers to have more control rather than relying on an API which may not be free for long. Side note: if anyone…

It's been years since I used CMU Sphinx, but don't you have to bring your own training data? Sure, there are free data sets out there, and pre-trained models, but they are not as good as what Google et al. have.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#139

Post by IshKebab »

zkirill wrote: post #17

I came across CMU Sphnix speech recognition library ( http://cmusphinx.sourceforge.net ) that has a BSD-style license and they just released a big update last month. It supports embedded and remote speech recognition. Could be a nice alternative for someone who may not need all of the bells and whistles and prefers to have more control rather than relying on an API which may not be free for long. Side note: if anyone…

Sphinx is an order of magnitude worse than Google. They're not in the same league.

Re: Google opens access to its speech recognition API

#140

Post by hk__2 »

kuschku wrote: post #133
ar7hur wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Our service Wit.ai (YC W14) does just that. Demo: https://labs.wit.ai/demo/index.html

Which languages does your service support?

From their website: de, en, es, et, fr, it, nl, pl, pt, ru, sv.
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