Commentary

China Overtakes U.S. In Smart Speakers

Numbers validating the massive growth of smart speakers keep pouring in.

The latest tally from Canalys shows first quarter shipments of smart speakers reaching 21 million devices.

The largest market is now China, with 11 million speakers shipping in the first quarter, with 5 million shipping in the U.S.

China now accounts for 51% of global smart speaker shipments, with the U.S. dropping to 24% in the first quarter, down from 44% in the last quarter of 2018.

An earlier forecast by the International Data Corporation (IDC) estimates that 144 million smart speakers will ship globally this year, with that number reaching 240 million in 2023, growing 14% a year until then.

Aside from the number of smart speakers hitting the market, the growth rate of the market is impressive.

For example, the annual growth of Amazon’s line of smart speaker was 85% and continues to lead in market share, accounting for 22% of the global market in the first quarter.

Google was second (17%), closely followed by Baidu (16%), Alibaba (16%) and Xiaomi (15%).

The growth rate of speakers in China is explosive. The annual growth rate of Xiaomi was 411% and Alibaba was 204%.

The smart speaker phenomenon is now global.

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1 comment about "China Overtakes U.S. In Smart Speakers".
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  1. Ed Papazian from Media Dynamics Inc, May 20, 2019 at 3:47 p.m.

    China had better watch out. Don't look now, but chopstick penetration in the U.S. is "exploding". According to reports, last month alone, the percentage of U.S. homes with two or more sets of chopsticks  increased by 38.7%. So, it appears that Americans are "embracing" chopsticks. Meanwhile "legacy" utensils like forks are declining as "fork cutting" escalates. And "fork nevers" are on the rise, as well.

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About the Author

Chuck Martin is Editor of the AI & IoT Daily at MediaPost and writes the daily Connected Thinking column. He is a NY Times Business bestselling author and his latest book is “Digital Transformation 3.0” (The New Business-to-Consumer Connections of The Internet of Things.) He is CEO of Net Future Institute and a frequent keynote speaker internationally. Follow him on Twitter @chuckmartin and contact him at Chuck@MediaPost.com.