Maluuba came out of nowhere last year to show up both Siri and Google Now at their own natural language game. The idea was simple: input a semantic query using your voice or keyboard and have the information displayed in an easy-to-read card. What the app didn’t know natively — Maluuba partners with a number of category-specific providers such as Yelp and Rotten Tomatoes, for instance — it obtains from search engines.
The app got smarter post-release when it added voice-based shopping to its app, and then earlier this year Maluuba expanded to another platform, Windows Phone 8, on its way to becoming more than just a client-side service. The Waterloo-based startup also released a natural language API, so third-party developers could add its Siri-like functionality to their own apps. While pickup has been slow, Maluuba is steadily making a mark on an industry obsessed with immediate gratification.
Today’s update for Android and Windows Phone 8 is consumer-facing, bringing TV show information and sports scores and standings to the masses. Not only can you ask when the next episode of Seinfeld is but you can inquire about where the Ottawa Senators are in the NHL playoff standings.
For Android users, Maluuba can actually take over the function Google Now on an OS level, so when you swipe up from the home button on a Nexus 4 or hold the home button on an HTC One, you can open the search box directly. Maluuba’s Product Manager, Mohamed Musbah, claims that the app is faster than the competition, and that its 1000 cable and satellite partners creates one of the most comprehensive TV listing databases in the industry.
In our usage, Maluuba rarely steered us wrong, and the easy-to-use interface was far more immediate than Google Now, which shows its Cards on a contextual basis. Maluuba’s category listing is one right-swipe away at all times, and is there to constantly remind you what information you can find. While it may not be every Android user’s saving grace — Google Now’s newly-released location-based reminders and public transit information is pretty fantastic — that it works with Gingerbread is a boon to users on older hardware. It’s also easily the best natural language assistant on Windows Phone 8, and should be a required download for all users.
Download Maluuba for Android and Windows Phone 8.
