Facebook might launch its smartphone speaker with 'M' assistant globally before launching in the US: Report

Facebook Developer’s conference, F8 2018 , kicked off on 1 May and a bunch of announcements have already been made by CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The company has launched **VR feature on its chat app** Messenger and announced its plan to bring a  **dating feature on Facebook** . The option to “ **Clear History** ” on Facebook is also one of the key features announced by Zuckerberg. [caption id=“attachment_2461448” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg. Reuters.[/caption] A new report on CNBC suggests that the company is planning to bring smart speakers to the international market first to avoid scrutiny on the  **data privacy issue** in the US. A previous report that came before the start of the F8 developer’s conference also confirmed that the smart speakers **will not be launched at the event** . According to the report, the smart speaker will be based on artificial intelligence program ‘M’ which also powers the chatbot M. **"M" chat-bot was discontinued** by Facebook in January and it is developing an “M” artificial intelligence program into a voice assistant. Earlier reports suggest that the smart speakers are **expected to be launched around July** and will take on existing speakers by Google and Amazon in the market. The smart speakers termed as **Aloha** and Fiona will take on Apple’s **HomePod** , Amazon’s Echo  **smart home speaker series** and **Google's Home and Home Mini**  smart speakers. The smart speaker is expected to come with a display and a camera which will integrate with Messenger to make chat and video call easier for the users. Other announcements at the Facebook F8 Developer’s conference includes **AR Camera on Instagram, group video chat on WhatsApp** , crisis response and M translations. Facebook also launched its first standalone VR headset from Oculus called the **Oculus Go**  at the event, at a price tag of $199.