From 16 words to conversation
IBM Shoebox from 1962 recognised 16 words and the digits. Dictation programs in the 1990s needed long training on the user's voice. Only neural networks brought recognition that works straight away.
Slovak
Smaller languages such as Slovak were poorly supported for a long time. With modern models, assistants understand Slovak much better, but full support on every device is still not a given.
Privacy
An assistant has to keep listening for its wake word. In the past, recordings were sent to people for review. For smart homes there are also local assistants, for example in Home Assistant, that do not need the cloud.