Here’s How Siri Works on the HomePod

Today Apple published an entry in its Machine Learning Journal that explains how Siri works on the HomePod.

[Apple’s Siri Might Protect Us From Machine Learning Misused Against Us]

Optimizing Siri on HomePod in Far-Field Settings

The entry, written by the audio software engineering team with the Siri speech team, reveals why Apple has been focusing a lot on machine learning lately. A far-field setting means people using Siri on the HomePod from a distance, like the opposite end of the room. Specifically, the teams discuss two things:

• Mask-based multichannel filtering using deep learning to remove echo and background noise


• Unsupervised learning to separate simultaneous sound sources and trigger-phrase based stream selection to eliminate interfering speech

Although the journal entry is highly technical in nature, it’s a fascinating glimpse into the technology underpinning the HomePod.

[Siri and Apple’s Machine Learning Are About to Get a Lot Better]

Share this post