When it comes to artificial intelligence, we must mention smart speakers, which are currently the best embodiment of artificial intelligence. In 2014, Amazon officially released the first smart speaker, the Echo, which marked the formal arrival of the “concept” of artificial intelligence into users’ homes. The Echo acts as a “hub” in the home, allowing any smart home product connected to it to be controlled via the Alexa smart voice system. This operation, which requires only voice commands, has indeed attracted a group of adventurous users.
Subsequently, Google and Microsoft also released their own smart speakers with built-in artificial intelligence, Google Home and Invoke. This year, after Apple launched the smart home product HomePod at WWDC, it also officially entered the smart speaker field.
Tmall Genie X1 Packaging Box
These speakers are hot abroad, but why are they silent in China? The reason is that the built-in Alexa of the Echo does not support Chinese operation, and Google Home has no plans to enter China. Although the HomePod supports Chinese, it focuses on music experience and has a high price tag, making it unlikely to become popular among Chinese users in the short term. In the short term, these foreign giants face considerable resistance in entering China’s artificial intelligence market.
While foreign companies are “unintentional”, domestic companies are “intentional”. JD.com’s Dingdong speaker and Lenovo’s smart speaker have opened the era of artificial intelligence in China. Of course, how could Alibaba be absent in the field of smart speakers in China? On July 5, Alibaba’s first self-developed artificial intelligence speaker, the Tmall Genie X1, was released. What kind of artificial intelligence does this speaker have?
Appearance: Visible Sense of Technology
Tmall Genie X1 Appearance
In the middle of the cylindrical body, the Tmall logo is faintly visible, while a mesh cover surrounds the bottom, which is where the entire speaker produces sound.
The top integrates six microphones around the circular edge, with a mute button in the center, which is the only button on the entire speaker. There are hidden volume buttons on both sides of the mute button.
Tmall Genie X1 Bottom LED Light Strip
The bottom has a hidden LED light strip above the power connection, currently supporting blue, white, and red colors. It should be noted that this speaker does not have a built-in battery and can only be powered through a power cord.
The all-black design and understated logo of the Tmall Genie X1 make it inconspicuous in the home. When the Tmall Genie X1 is turned on, the bottom light strip gives the speaker a “futuristic technological feel”.
This speaker is a bit different
Since it is a smart speaker, its system is crucial. The voice recognition technology of the Tmall Genie X1 is different from the voice recognition technologies used by other smart speakers like iFlytek and Mobvoi; instead, it is developed independently by Alibaba—AliGenie. Its advantage lies in its use of voiceprint technology, which recognizes different users based on their voice characteristics to ensure security and privacy.
Based on this voiceprint recognition technology, Alibaba also launched the voiceprint shopping feature, which is currently the first commercial voiceprint shopping system in China. Payments can be completed through voiceprint; when you initiate shopping or recharging, you only need to say your voiceprint password, and the voice recognition system will verify your identity before completing the transaction; otherwise, it will reject the request.
The content in the speaker comes from Ximalaya FM and has also integrated content from Alibaba’s ecosystem, including Xiami Music, as well as partnerships with fitness apps like Keep, making the content library richer.
Tmall Genie X1 Top Mute Microphone and Touch Volume
The most important point is that the voice of the Tmall Genie X1 can not only enjoy music but also assist with fitness or reminders; it can also connect with smart home products. It has currently integrated with Alibaba’s smart home platform, Tuya Smart, Gubei Technology smart home platform, and other categories, totaling over 1,000 smart hardware, with plans to integrate with more smart home platforms in the future.
In addition to voice, the Tmall Genie X1 uses MediaTek’s first chip specifically developed for the smart voice industry, which has been specially optimized for decoding, noise reduction, sound processing, and multi-channel collaboration. The custom chip includes an independent NEON processing unit, which accelerates audio and voice processing, as well as voice synthesis.
Experience: Good Sound Quality, Accurate Voice Recognition
After turning on the Tmall Genie X1, you can follow the voice prompts to connect. The initial voice prompt was somewhat surprising; its voice feels more like a conversation. According to the official introduction, the voice talent for the speaker was selected from 100 voice actors, ultimately choosing a voice that better matches human speech.
Recording Voiceprint After Connecting Wirelessly to the Speaker
Returning to the main point, the Tmall Genie X1 pairs with the phone easily if you follow the steps in the app. Like mainstream smart speakers, it has two connection methods: one is to connect to WiFi, and the other is a regular Bluetooth connection. Of course, only WiFi connection allows for more smart voice operations; Bluetooth only supports music playback.
Tmall Genie X1 Speaker Bottom Light Strip Indication
After connecting to WiFi, the speaker shows white, and after connecting via Bluetooth, it shows blue, making it easy to distinguish between the two. Once connected, the speaker can be used.
Actual Application Experience
Thanks to the six-direction microphones, its response is very sensitive; you don’t need to raise your voice to wake it up, and the light strip below the speaker combined with voice recognition adds a touch of liveliness.
Tmall Genie X1 Voice Recognition
In the video, you can see that the voice recognition of the Tmall Genie X1 is very sensitive; even if it misrecognizes a word, it can understand the correct content based on context. Additionally, the user’s voice recognition and dialogue content will be displayed in the mobile app simultaneously.
Since we received a testing version, there may be some minor issues. For example, when I ask about the weather, it shows “Guangzhou” while I am in Beijing. Furthermore, when I issue the command to listen to the radio, the local station resources may be limited, but there is still a wealth of online radio content, such as crosstalk. When I don’t want to listen, I can directly mute it using the top mute microphone.
In terms of smart home integration, the Tmall Genie X1 can connect and interact with all smart devices on the Alibaba smart platform. However, smart home technology is still in the early adoption phase in China, so while smart home integration may be a focus in the future, it is not the main focus at present.
Finally, regarding voiceprint shopping, the official claims that it can recognize each person’s unique voice, presenting a personalized experience; we also used voiceprint shopping to recharge a mobile phone, and as long as the voiceprint is correctly bound, the recharge operation can be completed entirely through voice.
A few small suggestions:
There are also some minor issues I hope to see improved, such as its current understanding of English not being very good, which is a major drawback for users who enjoy listening to English songs. Additionally, it cannot handle ambiguous voice commands. I hope future versions will have more precise voice recognition.
Conclusion:
The biggest difference between a smart speaker and a regular speaker is that it can serve as both a speaker and as a link connecting every smart product in the home. Although smart living still seems far from us now, with the evolution from Dingdong speaker to Tmall Genie X1, the functions of smart speakers are becoming richer, and voice recognition is becoming smarter. I believe that in the future “Internet of Everything” era, speakers will become a necessity. (Ruihao)
