In 2018 smart speaker ownership has doubled in the UK. The most popular voice assistant is Amazon Alexa which is part of the Alexa Echo device, followed by Google Assistant which powers Google Home and Google Home Mini, Apple's Home Pod and Sonos One. At the moment people mainly use voice assistants to play music, answer questions, set alarm and reminders. Is there an opportunity there for marketers? Alexa provides a set of built-in capabilities, called skills.

Wish there was a place to shop where you could compare prices from multiple retailers at once and get the best deal on your favorite products, while also getting everything you need shipped quickly and efficiently right to your door? Say hello to Google Express, the online shopping service that's designed to give you that experience. While it's been around for years, this constantly evolving platform is part of Google's attempt to unseat Amazon's hegemony in the online shopping world. The service aims to make buying products online more convenient and accessible. But chances are, you've never even heard of it before.

Walmart customers once again will be able to voice-order their groceries with Google Assistant, another bid by the brick-and-mortar store to compete with Amazon. The retailer announced the partnership on Tuesday, and said it would gradually roll out the feature in the next few weeks. The development comes after Walmart unceremoniously left Google Express, Google's online shopping tool, back in January, reportedly to develop its own Google Assistant shopping feature. Walmart shoppers will soon be able to add items to their shopping carts by saying "Hey Google, talk to Walmart." The feature will be cross-platform, meaning customers can shop from any device that has the Google Assistant feature, ranging from smart speakers and displays to their Android watch or iPhone.

A Google spokesman declined to comment. The store's launch comes after Google agreed to invest $550 million in JD.com in June 2018. That deal came after Google funded several small Chinese tech companies, most of which specialized in artificial intelligence. Google's search engine has been inaccessible from China since 2010, though the company maintains sales and engineering teams in the country. The two companies also share several common partners in the United States and Asia.

Target is jumping into voice-activated shopping as it deepens its relationship with Google, offering thousands of items found in the store except for perishables like fruit and milk. The move is happening as Google says shopping will be available later this year through Google Assistant on iPhone and Android phones, joining its Google Home device and Android TV. So shoppers can shout out orders to their phone while they're running around doing errands or just walking. TTarget is jumping into voice-activated shopping as it deepens its relationship with Google, offering thousands of items found in the store except for perishables like fruit and milk. The move is happening as Google says shopping will be available later in 2017 through Google Assistant on iPhone and Android phones, joining its Google Home device and Android TV.

For the past few years, Target has been testing the Google Express service in California and New York City. Now, the service is expanding nationwide. Starting today, you can now use Google's same-day home delivery service at Targets all across the continental US (but not Alaska or Hawaii). You can also use Google Assistant to shop with your voice; it's coming soon to eligible Android and iPhone devices and available now on Google Home devices and Android TV. Google Express is a delivery service that is somewhat of a competitor to Amazon Prime. You can shop from local stores and pay a per-order delivery fee, rather than Amazon's flat yearly fee.

Target's higher minimum wage aims to attract and retain good staffers. See how much other big retailers are paying. This May 3, 2017, photo shows the Target logo on a store in Upper Saint Clair, Pa. Target is jumping into voice-activated shopping as it deepens its relationship with Google, offering thousands of items found in the store except for perishables like fruit and milk. The move is happening as Google says shopping will be available later in 2017 through Google Assistant on iPhone and Android phones, joining its Google Home device and Android TV.

More devices are in the hands of shoppers. Even Apple has one coming out this year. But the key is personalizing the order so if a consumer shouts out "detergent," the voice assistant will know the exact brand that the shopper wants. Target says that it will give customers the option to link their accounts with Google Express for more personalized shopping. In fact, Walmart, which went live with voice shopping last week, is integrating its easy reorder feature -- which has data on both store and online purchases -- into Google Express.

Last month, Google announced that Walmart would be the next retail partner to use Express, Google's shopping and delivery service. At the time, it wasn't totally clear when the integration would go live, but as of today you can order from Walmart via Google Express -- which also means you can now shop Walmart with your voice using Google Assistant. Setting this up is pretty straightforward -- you'll first need to link a Walmart account to your Google account. Once that's done, you can ask Google Assistant to order whatever item you might be interested in. The Assistant will read you back options that you can accept or decline and it'll tell you what retailer they come from as well as how much they cost.

It's hard to overstate Amazon's online retail dominance. With 76 percent market share of online retail, it's as if the 95-96 Chicago Bulls entered your local rec league. No one can challenge Amazon today, but a newly announced partnership between Google and Walmart--allowing you to order groceries with from the latter with Google Assistant, or online via Google Express, starting late September--may ultimately present a threat. In Walmart, Google adds a retail behemoth to its Google Express service, an online shopping bazaar in need of an anchor. In Google, Walmart gains a foothold in the voice-enabled future of commerce.