Watch out, Siri. It looks like Microsoft is ready to unveil its new digital personal assistant, according to The Verge.
Citing “sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans,” The Verge reports that the Siri competitor is currently being called “Cortana" and will officially be unveiled next month at the company's Build Conference next month in San Francisco as part of the Windows Phone 8.1 update.
Yes, gamers, that is the name of Master Chief’s holographic companion from the Halo franchise and no, the Windows Phone voice-activated assistant won’t be portrayed as a voluptuous blue woman. Instead, leaked screenshots indicate that Cortana will be represented by a blue circle — which is no guarantee that Joaquin Phoenix won’t fall in love with it.
Microsoft has not confirmed or denied the rumors, telling NBC News through a spokesperson, "We have nothing to share about future plans."
So, what will it do? Cortana — which could be called something else once it’s officially launched – will be able to answer questions with the help of reminders, location data, contact information and more, writes The Verge, and will utilize different apps and services like Bing and Foursquare. It will replace the Bing voice search function that Windows Phone owners use now.
Cortana will also, according to The Verge, be able to search your email for mentions of specific words and flight tracking information, allowing for custom notifications with minimal effort.
Oh, and reportedly you will be able to make Cortana call you by a nickname, just in case you want to take your Halo fantasies to a new level.
