AiC Episode 76

In this episode, Teri talks about the Alexa Skills that were winners in the 2019 Webby Awards.

The Webby Awards are awards that are given to people, organizations, and companies that are doing incredible things on the web. With the explosion of voice technology, the awards added ten new categories just for voice. Teri is going to highlight the winning Alexa skill that is available in Canada as well as those that got honorable mentions.

Ready? Here we go! And the Honorable Mentions were!

#1 ALIEN: Offworld Colony Simulator

  • It’s by 20th Century Fox and was one of the honorable mentions in the best user-experience category.
  • It is a turn-based exploration game that challenges you to escape from the sectors of a locked down Weyland-Yutani Space Colony. The objective of the game is to escape as many colony sectors as possible before being trapped by the colony’s quarantine protocol, or falling prey to security hazards.

#2 Bedtime Explorers

  • This is by Kinderling Kids Radio.
  • It is a soundscape type of exploration for children to be used primarily when they are getting ready for bed. It has very soothing music and voice and gives kids the option to explore different animals or magical places in a soothing and calming way. It keeps the kids entertained and allows them to settle down for the evening.

#3 Big Sky

  • It is by Philosophical Creations and it was an honorable mention in the Productivity category.
  • It is the go-to weather skill. It has a more detailed weather forecast and information than the built-in weather forecast in Alexa.
  • It uses the Dark Sky API, to give hyper-local for hour-by-hour weather forecasts tied to your actual street address.

#4 Chompers

  • It is by Gimlet Media and was an honorable mention in the health, fitness and lifestyle category.
  • It’s a great skill that helps you get your kids to brush their teeth. You simply say, “Alexa, start chompers”
  • Kids hear jokes, riddles, stories, fun facts, silly songs and more, that keep them giggling and brushing for the full two minutes that dentists recommend.
  • To help your family build good brushing habits, Chompers counts the times you brush and celebrates your streaks.

#5 Sleep Sounds

  • It is by Invoked Apps LLC and it was an honorable mention in the health, fitness and lifestyle category.
  • It plays calming sound loops to help you fall asleep faster, sleep better, relax, meditate, or drown out distracting noises.
  • There are several sleep sound skills, so one has to look out for this one by Invoked Apps, by listening right after you say, “Open Sleep Sounds”. It will say, “Welcome to Sleep Sounds by Invoked Apps”

#6 Song Quiz

  • It is by Volley Inc. and it was an honorable mention in the games and entertainment category.
  • It is a great game.
  • When you say, “Open Song Quiz”, it asks you for a decade of songs and you have to guess the name and artist of the song based on a short clip that it plays. You can also choose a number of players.

#7 Suggest a Beer

  • It is by Dabble Lab and it was an honorable mention in the food and drink category.
  • It is available in Canada but the content isn’t Canadian.
  • It can suggest a beer to you, and it has more than 5,000 different beers, but they are all American brewed craft and specialty beers. It can suggest a random beer or a beer by state.

Webby-Winning Alexa Skills in Canada 2019

And now for the winner skill that is available in Canada… drum roll, please…

Headspace: Guided Meditation for Everybody

  • It is by Headspace and it won in two categories, Health, Fitness and Lifestyle, and People’s Voice.
  • Headspace is meditation and mindfulness made simple. It’s very soothing, has a great voice and talks you through how to meditate and how to be more mindful with lots of different exercises and meditations that you can do.
  • It’s great for relaxing, feeling calm, and winding down if you are feeling anxious.

List of resources mentioned in this episode:

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