Might Google compete against Siri with Alfred?

Google on Tuesday added to its acquisition arsenal with a company whose technology might take on Apple's Siri voice assistant.

The search giant purchased CleverSense, which developed Alfred, an app the company has designated as "your personal robot."

And while you can't speak to Alfred like you can with Siri, the app provides recommendations on restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and clubs based on your preferences, location, and other factors, eventually "learning" what you like over time.

"We built Alfred to create a simple, enjoyable, and powerful way to discover new places and help make decisions on the go," Babak Pahlavan, CleverSense co-founder and CEO, said in a note on its Web site. "It's exciting to see that our passion turned into something people around the world use regularly to make everyday decisions that are just right for them."

With Google, CleverSense said it will "start a new chapter in curating the world around us [and] accelerate our efforts toward this shared vision."

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