Personal assistant Indigo release date announced, coming to Windows Phone 8 on April 23rd

Hello Indigo, if you're not already familiar with the name, is a personal assistant that's set to be released later this month. Coming to Windows Phone 8 and Android on April 23rd, Indigo will enable consumers to have an intelligent conversation with the system that's said to be able to understand everyday phrases. Think Siri, but more functional and offering numerous new features. We took a look at Indigo back at MWC.

If this is the case and Indigo really can understand speech input without requiring special commands, this could be pretty huge for the personal assistant craze. Windows Phone already has a well-established assistant called Ask Ziggy and Indigo will fit right in as a sibling, sporting similar functionality. Users of Indigo can even personalise the experience by building a profile on personal interest and hobbies.

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The best part about Indigo is that it's cross-platform. You can even start a conversation on one device and carry it on using another (whether it be Android or Windows Phone). According to the official website, Indigo will boast the ability to:

  • Tap into social networks and carry out commands without requiring login details and typing a single line. Now that would be pretty special. Being able to tweet, update Facebook and more straight from the start screen - without loading a single app. 
  • Recommend local restaurants. Indigo is integrated with Yelp to help find ideal venues to check out.
  • Search the web, utilising Google, Bing, etc. to look up anything you can think of.
  • Compose email on the go and send it to a contact, hands-free.
  • Stream music from Spotify, selecting an artist, song or even a mood.

Sounds pretty neat, right? Be sure to keep an eye on this space as we'll update when the app is finally available on the Windows Phone Store. Also, head on over the the official website to set up an account and read up more information.

Source: Twitter (@hello_indigo), thanks, Simon, for the tip!

Rich Edmonds
Senior Editor, PC Build

Rich Edmonds was formerly a Senior Editor of PC hardware at Windows Central, covering everything related to PC components and NAS. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a PC chassis. You can follow him on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.