Starbucks' new virtual assistant is the barista version of Siri

Starbucks is putting its own spin on the virtual assistant. The popular coffee franchise has rolled out a Siri-like assistant app for mobile that lets you skip baristas and place orders by chatting or speaking directly to your phone. The feature essentially works as an extension of the Mobile and Pay functionality Starbucks launched back in 2015, which allowed customers to avoid annoying queues by ordering in advance online. Last year, Facebook's VP of Design thought the TNW Conference main stage was the best she'd ever been on. Much like Google Assistant and Apple's Siri, My Starbucks Barista has the capacity to function both as a voice-enabled assistant and a chatbot – and also maintains the ability to customize your orders according to your personal preference.