DIY + AI equals AIY

In this video, we try out the AIY Voice Kit V2, a do-it-yourself (DIY) artificial intelligence (AI) kit from Google based on the Raspberry Pi Zero WH. The kit presents an easy way to get started with voice control and speech recognition.

First, there was version 1

Version one of the Voice Kit was based on a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B, which was not included. A pre-programmed microSD card was not included in the kit either. This made the kit less interesting and so AIY went back to the drawing board to come up with Version 2, which we try out in the video below.

Voice Kit V2 is Easy to Assemble

The Voice Kit V2 contains most of the things you need except for a suitable power supply and a small screwdriver. Assembling the kit is a piece of cake, and everything works right out of the box. Detailed and clear instructions can be found at https://aiyprojects.withgoogle.com/voice/#meet-your-kit

Google Cloud Services Required

Of course, since it is a kit from Google, it uses Google cloud services, which means that an internet connection is required for the demos to work. Also, these cloud services are not necessarily free.

Voice Bonnet

The Voice Bonnet audio add-on card is an interesting board and it can probably be repurposed for use with off-line speech recognition libraries.