Apple Inc. has hired a new engineer to lead software efforts for its HomePod smart speaker, which aims to turn the product into a huge hit.
According to people with knowledge of the matter, the iPhone maker is enlisting the Afroz family to lead the work. The family worked at Apple from 2012 to 2016 before co-founding audio startup Syng with former Apple industrial designer Christopher Stringer. The family left the startup earlier this year after helping develop the company’s product, Sail Alpha.
Apple Amazon.com Inc. and Alphabet Inc. K wants to better challenge Google’s smart speakers. Amazon’s Echo device, equipped with the Alexa voice assistant, currently dominates the industry. Users rely on the product to do things like play music, answer questions, and set alarms.
A representative for Apple based in Cupertino, Calif., declined to comment.
Jason Harrison, who oversees HomePod software, left Apple last year for Airbnb Inc. The original HomePod, which started at $349 in 2018, sold poorly and was discontinued earlier this year. Last fall, Apple revisited the concept with the $99 HomePod Mini.
That device hasn’t become a blockbuster for Apple, but it has helped improve the company’s overall speaker sales. Still, it hasn’t made major inroads against Amazon and Google devices, according to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners.
Singh has had his struggles. The startup developed its speaker as a higher-end alternative to the HomePod, coming in at $1,800. It provides what the startup calls “triphonic sound”—audio that comes from three different directions. But the device was a challenge to develop and manufacture, and its price makes it a niche product.
The family has a lot of smart speaker experience. Prior to Syng, he was an audio engineer at Apple and worked on the original HomePod.
Apple usually updates the HomePod’s software on an annual basis, along with its major iPhone and iPad software updates. Last month, the tech giant updated the HomePod software with better Apple TV integration. The company also shook up management of the product several months ago, when it combined the HomePod and Apple TV software teams into a single group, reporting to iTunes creator Jeff Robin.
Eventually, Apple plans to merge its HomePod and Apple TV hardware. Bloomberg News reported that the company is working on Apple TV, HomePod and FaceTime camera devices as early as 2023.
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed.
Don’t miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint.
download
Our App Now!!
.