The use of voice-enabled speakers, such as Amazon Echo and Google Home, is continuing to gain popularity as more people become comfortable with the technology. Indeed, according to the research firm, eMarketer, almost 36 million Americans used these devices at least once a month in 2017, which is a jump of almost 129 percent over 2016.
As prices continue to drop on these so-called digital assistants, expect even more homeowners to embrace the technology and also demand additional functionality. Instead of just asking Alexa or Google to play a long-forgotten tune from the 1980s, users will likely want to ask them to turn off the lights or turn up the heat. On the latter request, boiler manufacturers are already poised to make that happen.