Google has begun to roll out an update to the voice match setup for Google Assistant which improves the identification of the feature.
With the new setup method, users should experience better accuracy for when Google Assistant is trying to identify who is speaking. All of this comes down to what you’re training the voice match to recognize.
Currently, when you try to set up the Google Assistant Voice match feature all you have to do is repeat the words “Ok Google.” You say this is a few times and eventually Google will recognize your voice. Apparently though Google felt that it needed to be more accurate.
Google Assistant Voice Match now has you saying more than just the hotword
To increase the accuracy of the identification during normal use, the voice match setup now includes extra steps.
There’s not really any extra steps, but it does now has you saying more than just the Ok Google hotword three or four times. The setup will still ask users to say the hotword, but it’s followed up with an actionable command.
So instead of just “Ok Google,” you’ll see “Ok Google, play my workout playlist.” The idea behind adding these commands to the end of the hotword (which is how you’d normally interact with Google Assistant) is that it can better identify the user based on what commands are being said.
The user doesn’t get to pick the commands during setup. And if multiple users set up voice match on the same device, they’ll probably see the same set of commands for the training. But those extra words should help to further separate each person from the other on Google Assistant’s end.
There’s also a sensitivity feature rolling out
To further make Assistant more useful, Google is also introducing users to a new sensitivity feature.
This new feature is not starting to roll out just yet but it is right around the corner. It’s intention is to make it so that users have precise control over how much they want Assistant to respond.
Say you have more than a few Google Assistant-powered devices in the home. Ones in other rooms can sometimes be activated with the hotword. Even if you’re only speaking to the device in your hand, such as your phone.
With the new feature you can adjust the sensitivity of devices individually. Which can help to prevent unintended activations. Google says uses will begin to see the sensitivity option in the coming weeks. So keep an eye out for it.