Google Assistant Actions Reach 4,253 in U.S. But Trail Amazon Alexa Significantly
A new Voicebot report shows Google Assistant Actions grow 2.5 times in 2018 to hit 4,253 U.S. apps, though this total remains far behind Amazon Alexa's 56,750 domestic skills. Education leads Google's platform while gaming dominates Alexa.
Google and Amazon compete fiercely for developer attention in the voice app ecosystem, but a new Voicebot analysis shows Amazon holding a massive lead. As of January 2019, Google Assistant Actions total 4,253 in the U.S., a significant increase from 1,719 the previous year but a far cry from the 56,750 Alexa skills available domestically. Google experiences slightly faster growth at 2.5 times year-over-year compared to Alexa's 2.2 times, though the sheer volume difference makes this percentage less impactful.
The categories attracting developers differ notably between the two rival platforms. Education & Reference leads Google Assistant with over 15 percent of all Actions, followed by Games & Fun at 11 percent and Kids & Family at 9 percent. Conversely, Games & Trivia dominates the Alexa ecosystem by accounting for 21 percent of all skills, with Education taking a secondary position at 14 percent.
This reversed popularity in top categories suggests distinct user perceptions of each smart speaker platform. Alexa appears to establish itself as the more entertainment-focused and family-oriented system, a trend Amazon actively encourages by directly paying developers to build voice games. Meanwhile, the Voicebot report raises important questions about whether raw app quantity truly matters for long-term platform success in the evolving voice technology market.