Tech news site Recode reported May 11, 2016 that Google was working on a stand-alone digital assistant that would resemble the OnHub. SAN FRANCISCO -- The crowd of stand-alone, voice activated digital assistants may get a little bigger soon, with a report from Recode that Google could be working on its own version. While voice activated assistants such as Siri, Cortana and OK Google have been in use on smart phones for several years, the surprise success of the Amazon Echo and it's Alexa has presented tech companies with the possibility of a new and so-far mostly untapped way for customers to use these assistants. A further broadening of the market could mean a shift in how people interact with technology. Voice recognition software that isn't tied to a smart phone but is on a communal device meant for home use is inherently less anti-social, say tech watchers.