Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 - June 2021
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 June 2021
Table of Contents
Executive Summary 2
Methodology3
Market Overview 4
Key Stats 10
Local Players 13
Yandex 13
Alice Voice Assistant 14
What Alice Can Do 16
Devices by Yandex 18
Mail.ru Group 21
Marusya Voice Assistant 22
What Marusya Can Do 23
Devices by Mail.ru Group 25
Sber 27
Salute Voice Assistant Family 28
What Salute Family Can Do 29
Devices by Sber 30
Tinkoff Bank 32
Oleg Voice Assistant 33
Global Players 35
About Just AI 36
Sources37
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 1
Executive Summary
Smart speakers are the fastest-growing segment in the history Businesses in Russia eagerly adopt voice as a new customer
of global electronics. Given the rate of market growth, we expect interaction channel — some rely on general-purpose voice
there will be 640 million smart speakers worldwide by the end of assistants designed by the likes of Yandex, while others create
2023. their own. There are companies — from financial institutions to
telecom giants — who either launched a voice assistant that
Mirroring the global trend, the Russian smart speaker and voice
helps their customers or have one in the works.
assistant market is growing at a fast pace. By the end of 2020,
according to Just AI research, 800 thousand smart speakers In this competitive environment, global giants like Google and
were sold in Russia, meaning, the country’s population owns over Apple have a much harder time promoting their offering, while
1 million smart speakers. Amazon has no official presence at all.
However, unlike the US and Europe, where Amazon, Google, and Russia’s conversational AI market is also big on firsts: from the
Apple battle for dominance, the Russian market is driven by local world’s first voice assistant for financial and lifestyle services to
tech giants. There are major internet companies like Yandex, Mail. the first voice assistant to appear on Clubhouse, to the first voice-
ru Group, and the financial giant-turned-tech-company Sber powered social network — and it’s still very far from settled.
— they all bring an entire “universe” of services to the market.
With expertise and experience in the Russian conversational AI
Leveraging local knowledge, these tech giants put homegrown
market, we bring you this report to provide a holistic overview of
Russian-speaking virtual assistants at the center of their
its main drivers and peculiarities and share one-of-a-kind stats.
ecosystems and design their own devices to get into users’ living
rooms.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 2
Methodology
Just AI is a global Conversational AI solutions provider with offices
in the UK, Europe, China, and Russia. We believe it is our mission
to fill in the knowledge gap about the different markets in the
industry, while our presence allows us to gather unique insights.
To create this report we used information from local media,
consulting agencies as well as utilized our survey results. Compiled
with our expertise, experience, and values, this report provides a
holistic overview of the Russian voice assistant market and shares
one-of-a-kind findings on how the pandemic affected it.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 3
Market Overview
The Russian voice assistant market is probably one of the most The pioneer of the Russian voice assistant market is Yandex
crowded ones and it’s growing at an incredible pace. Unlike the (NASDAQ: YNDX), one of the leading internet companies in Europe,
US and Europe, where Amazon, Google, and Apple battle for which comprises a plethora of services. From Russia’s most
dominance, the Russian market is driven by local tech companies popular search engine to taxi and car-sharing service to food
that add voice and conversational AI to the already existing vast delivery and e-grocery, and much more — Yandex just keeps on
ecosystems of digital services. expanding its ecosystem. In 2017, the company launched its own
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 4
voice assistant Alice (aka Alisa in Russian) that became the center messaging services, and owns two of the most popular social
of Yandex’s ecosystem and somewhat of a cultural phenomenon networking sites in the country was the next one to make a
— due to its distinct personality and quirky sense of humor. The move toward voice adoption. The company launched its own
company was also quick to launch its voice-assistant-powered voice assistant Marusa that also helps users navigate the vast
device — in 2018 Yandex.Station smart speaker was released ecosystem of services Mail.ru Group offers. Within less than two
and now users can choose from over 15 smart devices designed years, the company released two smart speakers — one of its own
by Yandex and its partners. Today, Yandex remains the market design named Capsule, the other created in a collaboration with a
leader with Alice being the most popular voice assistant in Russia, smart devices manufacturer Prestigio. In May 2021, Mail.ru Group
according to Just AI research. integrated Marusya with VKontakte — one of the social network
sites in its ecosystem. According to the company, this integration
However, there are more local tech giants following in Yandex’s
made it the world’s first voice-powered social network and gave
footsteps: Mail.ru Group (LSE: MAIL), one of the largest internet
Marusya an impressive competitive edge.
companies in Russia, that operates internet portals, email, and
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 5
But Russia’s voice assistant market just kept getting more and Inspired by this example, other financial institutions in Russia are
more crowded and in the fall of 2020 saw an entire family of three also embracing the voice channel: Raiffeisenbank launched its AI-
voice assistants emerge — their audience could potentially reach powered voice assistant with a personality and a digital avatar of
60 million of the Sberbank Online user base. Sberbank, one of its own, VTB Bank (LSE:VTBR) released a voice assistant for its
the largest financial institutions in Europe, rebranded itself as a mobile banking app, while Alfa-Bank revealed its future financial
tech company and shed the ‘bank’ part of its name. The revamped assistant Alf. There are other companies like telecom giants MTS
Sber introduced Salute — a family of three voice assistants with (NYSE: MBT) and VimpelCom (NASDAQ: VIP) who reportedly have
different personalities, designed to help users navigate “a universe” their voice assistants in the works and vast user bases to rely on.
of Sber’s digital services — and two voice-powered devices to go So, the Russian voice assistant market is far from settled.
with them: a smart TV streamer SberBox and Russia’s first smart
In this competitive environment, where Russian tech companies
display SberPortal.
rely on virtual assistants to power ecosystems of services and
However, Sber was not the first financial institution in Russia to utilize local knowledge to cater to user needs, global players like
enter the voice tech space: in 2019, Tinkoff, one of the world’s Google and Apple have a much harder time adapting. Compared to
largest online banks, introduced a voice assistant of its own. “The Yandex’s Alice with its 45 million monthly users, Google Assistant
world’s first voice assistant for financial and lifestyle services,” and Siri follow with 11 and 6 million users respectively. Given that
Oleg helps customers in the Tinkoff super app to make purchases neither Google nor Apple have ecosystems in Russia that can
and guides them through the bank’s services. The voice assistant compete with those that local companies offer, it will be difficult
also boasts advanced skills like budget control, recurring for them to gain the competitive edge.
payments, the ability to report insurance events, and an answering
machine.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 6
This local dominance similarly affects Russia’s smart speaker During the pandemic, people began to use smart devices more
market, which is also growing even though a little slower than often, which fostered competition for customers. Mail.ru launched
the global market. By the end of 2020, according to Just AI, 800 its Capsule smart speaker with a custom voice assistant named
thousand smart speakers were sold in Russia, meaning, the Marusya, Yandex announced the Station Max, a premium smart
country’s population owns over 1 million smart speakers. More speaker. Sber unveiled the SberBox smart TV streamer and
than 85% of the devices sold are smart speakers powered by presented SberPortal, the first premium smart display on the
Yandex’s voice assistant Alice. Russian market. Smart displays by foreign manufacturers like
Google Nest Hub or Amazon Echo Show are also not shipped to
According to a 2020 study by the retailer M.Video-Eldorado Group,
Russia officially and do not support the Russian language.
there are about 20 smart speakers on the Russian market, and
their price varies from 4 to 30 thousand roubles ($55 to $415). According to Just AI research, despite the pandemic, more than
Those are mostly devices designed by either Russia’s big tech 100 thousand Capsule smart speakers by Mail.ru Group were sold
companies like Yandex and Mail.ru or their partners. Devices by in 2020. It’s important to say that Mail.ru was forced to postpone
foreign companies make up less than 1% of all smart speakers its smart speaker launch since some factories in China were shut
sold in Russia. Google Home with Google Assistant, Amazon Echo down for a certain period. Then, when the smart speaker was
with Alexa, and Apple HomePod with Siri are not shipped to Russia available for purchase, no one went to the shops because of the
officially and do not support the Russian language. self-isolation regime. For comparison: according to our estimates,
Yandex.Station sold 40 thousand devices during the first year after
launch.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 7
Smart Devices by Russian Companies
and Their Partners
Alice Yandex Smart Speakers Sber Smart Display Marusya Devices
Yandex.Station Yandex.Station Yandex.Station SberPortal Capsule Smart Prestigio
Max Mini Speaker Mail.ru Smartvoice Smart
Group Speaker
Partner devices with Alice inside
JBL Link JBL Link Prestigio LG XBOOM AI ELARI SmartBeat
Music Portable Smartmate Mayak ThinkQ WK7Y
Edition
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 8
Smart Devices by Global Manufacturers
Amazon Alexa Smart Devices
Amazon Echo Amazon Echo Dot Amazon Echo Amazon Echo Amazon Echo 1st
Dot 3th Gen 4th Gen Show 8 2nd Gen Gen
Apple Siri Smart Speaker
Smart devices by Amazon, Apple, and
Google are available for purchase in
Russia but do not support the Russian
Apple HomePod Apple HomePod Apple HomePod (MQHW2) language.
mini White Space Gray
Google Assistant Smart Speakers
Google Home Google Nest Google Home Google Nest Google Nest Google Nest Hub
Mini Mini EU Audio Hub Max
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 9Key Stats
According to research by Just AI, in 2020 the audience of voice
assistants in Russia reached 52 million users. Alice from Yandex is
leading the market with 45 million users. Google Assistant follows
with 11 million users and 6 million use Siri. At the same time, part
of the audience uses several assistants at once.
According to the survey, 80% of respondents use Alice, 20% use
Google Assistant, and 11% use Siri. At the same time, 80% of the
Google Assistant audience uses some other voice assistant, 35% of
Siri users, and 34% of Alice users also use other assistants.
The total number of users of voice assistants is growing. Some
77% of those surveyed in 2020 said they had tried using voice
assistants, compared to 71% in 2019.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 10During the survey, we asked users whether they knew about
the new voice assistants. 36% of respondents have heard about
Marusya and 27% about Sberbank’s assistants. Oleg from Tinkoff
Bank is familiar to only 5% of the respondents. At the same time,
28% of respondents have not heard of any voice assistants and
3% do not know what voice assistants are.
The balance of power among devices with voice assistants
is changing. In 2019, 90% of respondents said that they used
assistants on smartphones, then in 2020, their share dropped to
76%. At the same time, more assistants are being used on other
devices. As sales of smart speakers grow, the share of voice
assistant users on these devices has increased from 2% to 6%.
The audience using assistants in cars has grown from 4% to 11%.
Over the past year, use cases for voice assistants have become
more diverse. People began to search for and play music with the
help of voice assistants more often, this activity grew from 4%
to 7%. The most frequent query is searching for answers, 37% of
respondents use it.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 11Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 12
Local Players
Yandex
In Russia, tech giant Yandex is pretty much like Google, Amazon,
and Uber — all wrapped in one. In 2017, the company launched
Alice the voice assistant to become the center of gravity to its
country-wide ecosystem comprising a search engine, food delivery
service, car sharing, cloud storage, and much much more.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 13Alice Voice Assistant
Devices and apps that support Alice
• Yandex.Station Smart Speaker • DEXP Smartbox
• Yandex.Station Mini Smart Speaker • Yandex.Module TV Streamer
• Yandex.Station Max Smart Speaker • HONOR 30 Pro+ Smartphone
• JBL Link Portable Smart Speaker • Yandex.Telephone
• JBL Link Music Smart Speaker • Yandex.Auto
• Prestigio Smartmate Mayak Edition Smart Speaker • Yandex.Browser
• LG Xboom AI ThinQ WK7Y Smart Speaker • Yandex.Drive
• Irbis A Smart Speaker • Elari KidPhone 3G
• ELARI SmartBeat Smart Speaker • Sony Xperia Ear Duo
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 14According to the figures recently released by Yandex, Alice’s user
base reaches some 45 million people monthly. The assistant can
do all the things one would expect from a digital voice assistant
like searching for information on the Internet, answering simple
questions, sharing news highlights and weather forecast, helping
access functions around your phone and entertaining content, and
acting like a chit-chat bot.
This chit-chat feature paired with Alice’s distinctive character
and quirky sense of humor is believed to be the key to the voice
assistant’s popularity. Soon after its release, Alice went viral on
Russian social media with screenshots of funny dialogues and
videos of people talking to it. Alice memes and people trying to
uncover its hidden skills on Youtube may not seem like much, but
they encouraged people to use smart assistants and disrupted the
way people communicated with them.
Much of Alice’s audience comes from smartphone users, even
though most devices have native digital assistants. Just like its
cousins abroad, the Russian virtual agent comes with Yandex.
Station, the first smart speaker on the Russian market — some 40
thousand of those were delivered in 2018.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 15What Alice Can Do
The first Russian assistant to appear on the market, Alice offers up news, weather forecasts, music, and short podcasts based on
the most skills compared to its competitors. Here are just some of their preferences.
them:
Assists with everyday tasks
Helps to be health-aware
Just like other virtual assistants, Alice helps users with everyday
Alice can replace a gym coach: the assistant will explain how to tasks and household chores: from setting timers and reminders to
do an exercise, turn on a workout playlist and count the necessary making grocery lists and finding recipes.
number of reps. Users can choose a workout to their taste — be it
Manages smart home
interval training, strengthening, or yoga — and adjust the difficulty
of exercises and counting speed. Integrated with a range of other devices, the voice assistant helps
users control smart homes with voice commands: for example,
The assistant can also check the Coronavirus symptoms and based
one can ask Alice to turn on the kettle at home while driving from
on users’ answers can recommend calling a doctor. Besides, Alice
work.
helps count calories, check alcohol content and find out nutrition
facts — even for meals from particular restaurants. Keeps children busy
Delivers entertainment Alice comes with a load of kid-friendly content: it can tell a
bedtime story, play a game, start a speech therapy session, and
With Alice inside, Yandex’s smart speakers can easily replace a
more. The voice assistant can help older children improve their
family entertainment center: there are interactive games, quests,
math skills, learn literature or even choose a university that suits
and quizzes for any occasion. The assistant can find songs, turn on
them best.
music and play videos. Besides, every user can get their Morning
and Late Night Shows. Owners can create a routine that will pick
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 16In May 2018, Yandex launched Alice’s ecosystem for third-party Yandex is also expanding its conversational solutions to the
developers — an open platform Yandex.Dialogs. Within the first automotive industry: Alice is integrated into the company’s in-car
month only after the launch, Yandex’s skill marketplace grew infotainment system Yandex.Auto enabling users to control the
to more than 4 thousand skills. This move encouraged large vehicle using voice commands or via the mobile app. Drivers can
businesses in different industries like banking, airlines, sports ask Alice to lock and unlock the doors, control the windows, start
equipment, restaurants, and education to embrace voice adoption. the engine, and open the trunk, and more. This system is utilized
Companies like Papa Johns, McDonald’s, Nicorette, and Skoda by Yandex’s car-sharing service Yandex.Drive as well as “millions
among others made use of Conversational AI in their marketing of new Renault, Nissan, AVTOVAZ / LADA vehicles in Russia,”
activities and build their set of skills for Alice. according to the company.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 17Devices by Yandex
Pioneer of the Russian smart speaker market Yandex released its Yandex.Station came with an array of seven microphones, meaning
first Yandex.Station smart speaker powered by voice assistant the device could accurately hear voice commands from anywhere
Alice back in 2018. Launched a year after Alice, the smart speaker in the room. It also boasted advanced sound quality that exceeded
became the center of the company’s ever-expanding ecosystem, “the quality offered by most other audio systems in its class”, and
got into users’ living rooms, and gave the company a dramatic had a removable speaker grill for “enjoying the sound in its purest
competitive advantage. form.”
Yandex.Station
With Yandex’s smart speaker on the market, Russian users could
finally experience “the benefits of a highly localized intelligent
assistant.” In the smart speaker, Alice could do pretty much
everything you’d expect from a virtual assistant: set an alarm,
read news, turn on music, search for and turn on movies, etc.
However, among the distinctive features of Yandex.Station was the
ability to “provide a complete in-home multimedia entertainment
experience.” Unlike smart speakers from Apple and Google, Yandex.
Station was equipped with both audio and video capabilities and
could not only play music but also stream films, videos, and TV
through its HDMI port to any connected display. At the moment
of launch, Yandex.Station had access to Yandex’s video streaming
service KinoPoisk and Yandex. Music, as well as a wide range of
other content including premium local video service providers.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 18Yandex.Station Mini
In October 2019, the Russian tech giant introduced Yandex. Station
Mini, the company’s first compact smart speaker also powered by
the intelligent assistant Alice.
The new device not only comes in a smaller size but also brings
gesture control that enables users to adjust the volume, snooze
the alarm clock, or stop an audio track by using hand movements.
However, Yandex found another way to put the gesture detection
sensor to good use: owners of Station Mini will be able to generate
a variety of sounds by moving their hands, much like playing the
theremin. Users could unleash their creativity and choose from a
growing library of sounds, that ranged from a classical guitar and
violin to exotic sounds, like clashing swords or spaceship engines.
The compact smart speaker was predictably cheaper than its full-
size predecessor Yandex.Station: at the moment of launch it cost
3,990 roubles ($60) compared to 9,990 roubles ($160).
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 19Yandex.Station Max
In November 2020, Yandex presented their third bespoke smart
speaker Yandex.Station Max — an upgraded version of the 2018
device. Apart from improved acoustics (65 watts instead of 50),
Dolby Audio sound, 4K HDR support, and remote control, the
smart speaker features a small LED display on the front — not to
be confused with a smart display. Yandex’s most expensive smart
speaker so far, Station Max, was priced at 16,990 roubles ($230) at
the moment of launch.
In March 2021, for the first time since the launch, Yandex revealed
how many Alice-powered smart speakers they sold between May
2018 and March 2021, which amounted to 1.3 million. In 2020, the
company’s revenue from Alice-powered smart device shipments
reached 3.7 billion roubles. The company did not disclose
particular details, but apparently, Yandex.Station and Station Mini
have the biggest share. The rest comes from Station Max and
partner devices.
Here it’s worth mentioning that Yandex has over 15 Alice-
powered devices, created in collaboration with brands like JBL,
LG, Prestigio, Irbis, Elari, and Dexp. This is yet another reason for
Alice’s leadership on the market.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 20Mail.ru Group
In June 2019, leading Russian tech company and Yandex’s main
rival, Mail.ru Group tech holding, owner of Russia’s two most
popular social networks Odnoklassniki and VKontakte, announced
it was beta-testing its very own voice assistant Marusya. With the
user base of those social networks that surpass the popularity of
Instagram and Facebook in Russia, the company was hoping to
organically drive its audience (the major part which is young and
progressive) to the new assistant.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 21Marusya Voice Assistant
The freshly launched Marusya could answer questions about the
weather, movie showtimes, and train tickets, as well as put on
music and radio, and perform a variety of other tasks. However,
within slightly over a year the Mail.ru Group’s voice assistant
gained hundreds of thousands of users and added new skills: from
morning routine to the smart home controls, to child-focused
content.
Devices and apps that support Marusya
• Marusya app for iOS mobile;
• Marusya app for Android;
• Capsule smart speaker;
• Prestigio Smartvoice smart speaker;
• Mail.ru Mail app for iOS;
• Mail.ru Mail app for Android.
In May 2021, Marusya integrated into the VKontakte social app. The
assistant will help send messages or call people on user’s social
networks, turn on music, find podcasts, and read the news.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 22What Marusya Can Do
Helps manage morning routine Offers kid-friendly content
The assistant can take over the morning routine — all the user Marusya features a child-safe mode, meaning children can be
needs to do is create the desired script. For example, with the left alone in the room with it: and “adult” news, answers, and
“Good morning” skill, the assistant can wake you up with a favorite songs will pop up. The voice assistant provides a healthy dose
song, tell you about the weather and currency exchange rates, as of screenless entertainment to children by playing games like
well as read the news — from outlets to your liking. “Animal Voices”, turning on the soundtrack from “Frozen”, telling
interesting facts, and playing quizzes. Marusya also offers skills
Marusya can also help in the kitchen: when asked, the assistant
for homeschooling like “Fun Math”, “Guess the Number” and
can repeat a recent order from the favorite eatery, by automatically
“Multiplication Table”.
placing it to a food delivery service. Or it can help cook breakfast
with whatever one has in a fridge, for example, find easy recipes Features smart home controls
with eggs.
Marusya is also a part of a smart home ecosystem: it integrates
Marusya offers time-planning functionalities and can assist users with 27 smart device manufacturers including Xiaomi, Rostelecom,
in sorting through emails — when asked to do so, the assistant will Redmond, Aqara, Rubetek, HIPER, and others. It can turn on the
read all your new messages aloud (or sort them by a sender). This light, heater, air conditioning, or humidifier, as well as put a kettle
functionality comes from the super app, launched by Mail.ru Group on, open curtains and turn on robot vacuum — by voice command
in December 2020, which comprises an email service, audio and or in the app. Besides, Marusya adds voice control to the online TV
video calls, a calendar, cloud storage, and to-do lists. service Wink.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 23Music, Games, Shopping, and more How to create new skills
At the same time, Marusya boasts a wide range of music skills, Marusya is open to third-party developers, and they can create
like recommending playlists for a certain occasion or mood (and new skills with Aimylogic, a low-code voice skill, and chatbot
knows the difference between more than 100 kinds of the latter), builder.
or sorting through the music that people on users’ social network
listen to, the assistant can translate to a hundred languages, play
games, search for goods on AliExpress and more.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 24Devices by Mail.ru Group
Capsule
In December 2019, Mail.ru Group first showcased its Capsule smart
speaker powered with Marusya voice assistant. The company
claimed it to be the first “smart” speaker on the Russian market
that enabled digital calls — device-owners with a VKontakte
account could call everyone on their network. Another unique
feature was that the Capsule could work with plastic RFID cards
designed for children that come with educational lessons and
games. Marusya powers all of the smart speaker’s features, like
playing games, answering questions looked up online and sharing
the weather forecast.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 25Prestigio SmartVoice
In 2020, Mail.Ru partnered with smartphone maker Prestigio to
create a new Marusya-powered smart speaker called Prestigio
SmartVoice. As with the previous smart speaker, the SmartVoice
can be used to make phone calls via VKontakte. In the new
speaker, Marusya has pretty much the same functions as in the
Capsule. The voice assistant brings many child-focused options,
like telling fairy tales and teaching math and English. The voice
assistant can also connect to mobile apps on iOS and Android
smartphones, along with smart home devices. At the time of
launch, the SmartVoice cost 3,990 roubles or about $52, half the
price of the Capsule, which is sold for 7,990 roubles, approximately
$110.
As of June 2021, Mail.ru Group hasn’t disclosed any information on
smart speaker sales, but according to Just AI’s estimates, Capsule
shipments could reach 100 thousand during the first year.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 26Sber
In September 2020, Russian finance giant Sberbank and one of the
biggest banks in Europe rebranded itself as Sber (MCX: SBER). It
reinvented itself as a tech company with “a universe” of its own
and partner offerings united around the banking business with
its 97 million customers. Sber’s ecosystem comprises banking,
e-grocery, music streaming service, online movie theater, and
more. Designed to become the heart of this universe, the company
launched Salute, a family of virtual assistants, and the first smart
devices of their own design: the SberBox set-top box and the
SberPortal (the first smart display on the Russian market).
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 27Salute Voice Assistant Family
According to the company, Salute is the world’s first virtual Devices and apps that support the Salute Family
assistant family that comes with “different characters, habits,
• Sberbank Online app for iOS and Android
and mindsets:” techy Sber — a “male”, as well as vivacious Joy,
and organized Athena — “females”. So, every user gets a unique • SberSalute app for iOS and Android
opportunity to choose the personality that suits them best. When
• SberPortal smart display
asked why the company went for three assistants instead of just
one, the chief designer and CEO of SberDevices Konstantin Kruglov • SberBox TV streamer
replied that daily users interact with different people: they like
some of them and dislike others. “So it only seemed natural to
enable users to choose from a variety of assistants: each character
of the Salute family will also eventually adapt to the users’ needs.”
All assistants have an identical set of skills: users can choose
one of them or switch between the three, and still enjoy all the
features of the Sber ecosystem.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 28What Salute Family Can Do
Provide access to Sber’s financial services Provide entertainment and kid-friendly content
One of the oldest financial institutions in Russia, Sber offers a The Salute assistants do not shy away from smalt talk, store tons
plethora of financial products and services that users access via of educational content, and have a lot to offer in the games and
the Sberbank Online banking app. Integration with the Salute trivia department.
family not only adds voice controls to the existing services but
To grow the number of voice assistant skills, Sber launched
also provides additional assistance to users. The Salute assistants
their equivalent of Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play. Called
can help to make a purchase, get a mortgage, check balance, use
SmartMarket, it enables developers to build their own apps,
currency converter, or find the nearest ATM, transfer money or top
offering a revenue-sharing agreement to those that do so.
up the phone — any product or service in Sber’s ecosystem can be
discovered and accessed with the help of virtual assistants.
Offer assistance in everyday tasks
Another feature that helps the Salute assistants stand out from
Alice and Marusya is their ability to assist with the agency thanks
to the Duet Service (similar to Google Duplex) — they can order
food, make a doctor appointment or book a beauty salon. And as
one would expect, all the Salute assistants can find answers to a
variety of questions.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 29Devices by Sber
In December 2020, Sber introduced two smart devices powered
by the Salute virtual assistants, both featuring voice, and visual
interfaces. According to the chief designer and CEO of SberDevices
Konstantin Kruglov, the company “doesn’t view consumer devices
as an income flow” adding that smart devices for Sber were more
of “an investment in a new customer interaction channel.” Unlike
Yandex and Mail.ru, Sber chose a TV streamer and smart display
as form factors for its first devices. Thus, SberBox set to box adds
voice controls to any TV and provides access to entertainment
content of all sorts. SberBox
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 30SberBox
SberBox is a multimedia set-top box / TV streamer, that turns any
television into a smart TV, providing access to movies, television,
music, and games. The device adds full-fledged voice assistant
features to the TV paired with easy access to a huge number of
services via the Internet. Since the screen is the TV itself, this
allows to greatly reduces the cost of the device.
SberPortal
SberPortal is the first multimedia smart display on the Russian
market featuring a virtual assistant, voice control, and gesture
recognition sensor. The device combines a native and easy-to-
understand voice interface with the ability to visualize things,
giving access to a whole range of services. For example, shopping
or ordering something in a restaurant, or playing games. With
SberPortal users can watch films, TV shows, and educational
videos with the online cinema Okko; access games, music videos,
feature films, series, sports events, online videos, and digital TV
channels, and music via the SberZvuk partner service.
Experts say that Sber’s smart display has many advantages over
its counterparts worldwide. It has a high-quality camera and
sound, as well as powerful hardware that allows you to implement
complex services and solutions.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 31Tinkoff Bank
In 2019, Tinkoff bank, one of the world’s biggest online banks with
over 12 million customers, introduced Oleg, the digital assistant.
According to Tinkoff, it was “the world’s first voice assistant for
financial and lifestyle services,” created for finance and lifestyle-
related tasks. With a mission to help users navigate the Tinkoff
ecosystem, Oleg recognizes and interprets commands, asks
follow-up questions, fixes certain problems, speaks on a variety of
topics and doesn’t shy away from chit-chat, and generally lives the
concept of “a friend who is always there for you”.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 32Oleg Voice Assistant
But most importantly, Oleg is 100% home-grown — the financial
giant-turned-tech company the banking institution built an AI-
powered voice assistant from scratch. Since 2014, Tinkoff has been
developing deep neural network models and voice technologies as
part of its AI-First strategy. The company also boasts its speech
recognition technology with an accuracy rate of 95%, which works
even in a sound-polluted environment. Besides, Tinkoff has its own
biometric system, which works 99.99% of the time, and i the voice
synthesis technology, based on WaveNet, Tacotron, and Deep Voice
neural models.
At the moment of launching, Oleg’s skills comprised transferring
money to Tinkoff Bank and Sberbank accounts, making restaurant
reservations, booking beauty appointments, searching for
discounts, purchasing movie tickets, offering money advice and
life-hacks, managing credit cards, changing personal information,
and much more. In the future, Tinkoff is planning to further
integrate Oleg into its ecosystem, which spans travel, mobile,
investment, insurance, and entertainment services.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 33To use the assistant now, one needs to launch the Tinkoff super Oleg is also the first bot to appear on Clubhouse — the voice
app, which might to a certain extent hinder its adoption. Still, the assistant can go into rooms and perform various secretarial tasks.
company is addressing that by making most of Oleg’s functionality The voice assistant is supposed to be capable of moderating
available in a hands-free mode. discussions, presumably refreshing the room, and reminding
people about time limits and any rules to the discussion. Oleg
So while Oleg is a relatively young digital assistant, it already has a
can transcribe the conversation in real-time as well, and Tinkoff
competitive edge that’ll take others great effort to surpass. Being
has set up a Telegram channel for it to stream Clubhouse
able to identify a user’s voice using biometric data and offering
conversations as text.
services where security is key, can provide a smooth experience
for customers without the perils of multi-step authorization.
Besides, each user can create their unique Oleg, as the new
functionality allows for choosing the assistant’s name and voice.
Oleg can be changed to Olya or any other name with a male or
female voice.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 34Global Players
While the Russian voice assistant market is dominated by local Amazon Alexa
companies, international players like Google and Apple are also
Amazon has no official presence in Russia whatsoever: be it voice
present.
assistant Alexa or devices powered by it. And while one still can
Google Assistant purchase Amazon smart speakers and smart displays in Russia,
using them would require a good grasp of the English language.
Compared to a whopping 45 million monthly users that Alice has,
Google Assistant follows with rather “modest ‘’ 11 million users, What makes it particularly hard for the international players to
even though its Russian version was launched the same year as establish themselves on the Russian market is that they neither
the Yandex voice assistant. While Google smart speakers and have properly localized smart devices to find their way into users
displays are not shipped to Russia officially, one can still purchase living rooms nor have proper ecosystems for developers to enable
them. However, Google Assistant in such devices does not support building new skills. Also, right now they cannot offer an ecosystem
the Russian language and therefore cannot be used to its full of products and services powered by local knowledge that will
potential. compete with those of Yandex, Mail.ru Group, and Sber.
Apple’s Siri
Siri is in a similar position: the voice assistant has been available
in Russian since 2017, but its user base counts 6 million people.
And just like in the case with Google, Siri in Apple’s smart devices
do not support the Russian language.
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 35About Just AI
Just AI is a global IT company specializing in Conversational AI We build products for any layer of development, which can be
tech, Machine Learning, and NLU since 2011. We create high-quality used by third-party devs independently or we can handle the
products for developers of any skill level and high-grade solutions whole process – starting with the idea and ending with the skill
for businesses of any size and any form. publication or solution deployment and support.
The core of our business – professional tools to design and create Just AI has offices in UK, Europe, China, and Russia. Currently,
conversational experiences: bots, virtual assistants, voice skills, AI- the company employs over 160 people – experts in the field of
powered voice calls, etc. computational linguistics, machine learning, voice UX design, and
software development.
Our tools are used by developers who create mission-critical
solutions, voice games, and skills that hit the top.
just-ai.com
hello@just-ai.com
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 36Sources
In English:
1. Alice Skills Platform: Let Yandex AI introduce you to the Russian 12. SberPortal: smart screen, premium sound, six mics, gesture
audience recognition, can make calls
2. The First Bot on Clubhouse Speaks Russian – Will the Voice 13. Unique SberBox smart streamer for any TV with HDMI ports:
Assistant’s Presence Change Social Audio Dynamics video, music, games, and even hairdresser appointments
3. Tinkoff voice assistant Oleg gets new features 14. Mail.Ru Partners With Smartphone Maker Prestigio to Launch
4. The First Social Network with Voice Control: Marusia Is Now on New Russian Smart Speaker
the VK App 15. Yandex Announces Expansion of Alice Intelligent Assistant
5. Tinkoff among world’s Top 3 neo‑banks according to WhiteSight Ecosystem with new Smart Speaker and Skills Platform
6. Battle of the Russian voice assistants 16. Russian Tech Giant Mail.Ru Debuts Capsule Smart Speaker
7. Local Knowledge and Personality Help Yandex’s Alice Virtual 17. Yandex Unveils Compact Smart Speaker with Gesture Control –
Assistant Dominate the Russian Market Yandex.Station Mini
8. New Version of Yandex.Auto Offers Deeper Car Connectivity 18. Tinkoff Group Official Website
9. Sberbank becomes Sber and starts building home electronics 19. Smart Speakers and Voice Assistants in Russia
10. ‘The Google of Russia’ just announced its own smart speaker — 20. Top 2021 Conversational Banking Trends Report
here’s what it can do 21. Do more with Oleg: Tinkoff Mobile launches voice assistant 2.0
11. They can schedule an appointment with a doctor, order a pizza, with more customisable features
and talk to you. Sber presents Salute, a unique family of virtual 22. Yandex Unveils Compact Smart Speaker with Gesture Control –
assistants Yandex.Station Mini
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 37In Russian
1. «Я много чего могу. Только не умею читать мысли»: чем 11. В России продаётся более 20 «умных» колонок — по продажам
помогает клиентам телефонный робот Олег из Тинькофф лидируют устройства с «Алисой», подсчитали торговые сети
2. «Сбер» открыл продажи «умного» дисплея SberPortal за 29 990 12. Выпущена маленькая и дешевая версия колонки Mail.ru с
рублей «Марусей»
3. Исследование: продажи беспроводных и «умных» колонок в 13. «Яндекс» впервые раскрыл количество проданных колонок с
России выросли на 38% — до 6,7 млрд рублей за семь месяцев «Алисой» — 1,3 млн почти за три года
4. «Алиса» начала проводить персональные утренние шоу в 14. Поддержка 4К HDR, LED-экран, 65 ватт звука и пульт: что нового
«умных» колонках в «Яндекс.Станции Макс» и насколько это важно
5. Про сравнения с «Яндексом», нужды людей и захват рынка 15. «Яндекс» представил «Станцию Мини» — умная колонка
ассистентов: рассказывает конструктор техники от «Сбера» понимает жесты
6. Чему Маруся от Mail.ru Group научилась за год 16. Lada, которая смогла: что умеет новая медиасистема Весты от
7. Вышел подробный гайд по навыкам Маруси Яндекса
8. Голосовой ассистент «Маруся» от Mail.Ru Group встроят в 17. «Яндекс»: успешно диверсифицирующийся технологический
приложение «ВКонтакте» гигант
9. Как разговорить Марусю: FAQ по созданию скиллов для 18. “Яндекс” рассекретил цифры продаж колонок с “Алисой”
голосового ассистента 19. Яндекс. Алиса. Официальная страница
10. Mail.ru Group выпустит мини-версию «умной» колонки 20. Капсула. Официальная страница
«Капсула»
Voice Assistant and Smart Speaker Landscape in Russia 2021 Table of contents 38You can also read
