How high is Mount Rainier? That question was one I remember from my reference class “scavenger hunt” assignments way back in my master’s program at Indiana University. It was also one of the first questions I asked our new Amazon Echo during the holidays as I experimented with Alexa as a virtual assistant. Since then, I’ve added three more “Dots” to the house that now control multicolor light bulbs, electrical outlets, and other smart home functions. I was slow to jump on the Internet of Things bandwagon, but now I’m sold. The numbers say that I am not alone, with TechCrunch reporting Amazon sold millions of Alexa devices over the holidays. More than one trendsetting report has noted that virtual assistants and artificial intelligence may be the next big thing. Exhibits and product launches at the recent Consumer Electronics Show offered all sorts of assistant-enabled devices. What would H.G. Wells say? Are Alexa and Siri a voice activated path to the world brain?

Alexa, what’s in the news?

Data from Google provides a glimpse into the households using these devices. Surveying 1,600 voice assistant owners, researchers found that 72 percent of people say the devices are often part of their daily routines. Some 52 percent of those surveyed have the device in a common room and 41 percent reported feeling as though they are talking to a friend or another person, “saying ‘please,’ ‘thank you,’ and even ‘sorry.’ ”

I am one of those folks who almost unconsciously thanks Alexa for turning on my office lights or playing a Fleetwood Mac song while I cook dinner. More than once, I caught myself and wondered, am I weird? The numbers above indicate it is indeed a thing, and I wonder how human virtual assistants will become as the technology improves. Cue a Weird AI gone mad episode of Black Mirror here, but the fact remains: people seem to take to a device that learns how we ask for things and speaks to us in a voice we understand.

Alexa, help

The study by Google also highlighted the top reasons people turn to their voice-activated speakers and virtual assistants. First, the devices allow users to multitask more easily in the home. It’s easy to create a calendar entry or add a “to do.” Second, virtual assistants do things faster than other devices because of the ease of voice commands as opposed to launching apps and finding settings. Users can curate a “Flash Briefing” from Alexa, a series of audio clips such as news, weather, and much more, known as skills. A simple command plays the briefing any time of day.

Librarians and information scientists should take note of these reasons virtual assistants have become invaluable to users. Google reported it empowers them to get answers and information instantly and simply, making their daily routine easier. Isn’t this what we want for the people we serve as well? And isn’t this evolving technology a perfect example of Zipf’s principle of least effort?

Alexa, create a to-do

I’d suggest libraries of all types should incorporate virtual assistant speakers and the like into technology classes, one-on-one support offerings, and discussions about privacy. Google’s survey did not include questions about privacy or surveillance. This merits conversation if our devices are indeed “listening.”

Libraries have the smallest presence in the virtual assistant landscape. Setting up my Flash Briefing, I was pleased to find hot fiction and library blog offerings from the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) as skills I could add to the morning news Alexa provides. I added LAPL’s blog to the mix and discovered Alexa would read recent posts to me as part of the briefing. Will more libraries follow? What’s the return on enabling content for virtual assistants? This feels like that uncharted territory that began with the first library blog or library IM account. Kudos to LAPL for exploring these options.

Of course, the more interesting functionality will come when we can ask our virtual assistants to look up books at our local libraries, place holds, and even read the books to us. With Amazon, Apple, and Google in control of a major part of the virtual assistant market, this may be a long time in coming.

For now, I will continue to learn how Alexa works and thank her when she tells me that Mount Rainier is 14,411 feet tall.