Google Assistant can do numerous things like serving you with the latest news, tell you the weather or scores of your favourite team’s match and starting now it will also be able to book a cab for you.
This service is available on Android phones, iPhone, Google Home or any other smart speaker than supports Google Assistant. This feature update to Google Assistant will be rolled out by the end of the week.
You can book a cab by simply saying, ‘Hey Google, book a ride to Birch Coffee’ or ‘Hey Google, get me a taxi to JFK International airport’. Your command will be followed by a list of options that include ride-hailing services like Uber, Lyft, Ola, Grab, GO-JEK and more depending on your region.
The list of these services will also include the estimated price and wait time for different services. You can also ask Google Assistant to book you a cab from your preferred cab service by including their name in your command. E.g., ‘Hey Google, book an Uber to Flake’ or ‘Hey Google, book a Lyft to SFO’.
Once you’ve done this, you’ll still need to tap on the preferred ride service, and their respective app will open for you to confirm the booking.
The feature is currently being offered only in English and in countries where Google’s aforementioned ride partners operate. More languages and services will be added over the coming months.
Although this automates part of the effort to book a cab service, it doesn’t completely automate the entire process because you’ll need to confirm your command after giving it with the ride-hailing service.
Critics might be of the view that this doesn’t really automate the process completely and is only a half-cooked solution but it is a good start.
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