The only Cortana-powered speaker is about to lose Cortana

Harman Kardon's Invoke was the first speaker to use Microsoft's Cortana speaker, and as it later turned out, also the last. In 2020, Microsoft said it would end consumer support for Cortana on iOS, Android and Invoke by early 2021 and use the AI assistant exclusively for business apps like Microsoft 365. That day has now come, as Harman Kardon has announced that it will soon release a software update that disables Cortana and turns the Invoke into a regular Bluetooth speaker, Thurott has reported. The update will arrive tomorrow, so in a FAQ, Harman Kardon advised owners to leave the speaker "connected to the internet and kept online overnight between 2 AM and 5 AM local time." The update will end after June 30th, 2021, but the Samsung-owned company noted that "Cortana service... will end in the coming months regardless of whether you receive the update."