NEW YORK: Cortana, Microsoft’s personal digital assistant has been unofficially ported to operating systems other than Windows Phone, according to reports.
Although, Cortana was rumoured to be launching on competitor platforms, such as Android and iOS, the service is currently only available on Microsoft operating systems.
However, VentureBeat is reporting that a group of Italian hackers named “OrangeSec” have successfully modified Cortana to work with Android. The unofficial port, dubbed “Portana” was unveiled at the Droidcon 2015 conference, which took place earlier this month in Turin, Italy.
However, before Android users get too excited, it’s worth pointing out that Portana does have some limitations compared with the official release, with OrangeSec only able to create a basic, albeit functional, version.
Portana can only speak Italian, for example, and only works when online. In fact, the app is still connected to Microsoft servers, as OrangeSec have not been able to duplicate all of Cortana’s features.
Cortana was launched by Microsoft in April last year and is one of several personal digital assistants available to mobile users. Like Apple’s Siri, Cortana is programmed to have a rudimentary form of artificial intelligence, learning the user’s search preferences and common language uses.
Although, currently only a mobile assistant, Microsoft is keen for Cortana to play a larger role in its products. The Redmond-based firm is incorporating the digital assistant into its desktop operating system, Windows 10, when it launches later this year.
