Americans Falling in Love with Smart Speakers

Americans are falling in love with smart speakers. One in three U.S. households (31%) now own one, up from 8% three years ago, according to a new Consumer Technology Association (CTA) study.

The “21st Annual Consumer Technology Ownership and Market Potential Study,” which examines household ownership and the intent to purchase across almost 60 consumer tech products, found that smart-speaker ownership jumped almost 100% for the second consecutive year.

The survey also confirmed that TVs, smartphones, and laptops remain the most commonly owned tech devices in America with household ownership at 95%, 91%, and 75%, respectively.

U.S. households adopted wireless earbuds and headphones in greater numbers over the last year, with growth outpacing their wired counterparts. Combined wireless earbuds and headphones ownership is now at almost half (48%) of all U.S. households, with a strong intent to buy (33%). which will likely carry the category to outpace wired products very soon.

Smart appliances continue to make gains with 17% of U.S. households owning smart light bulbs, thermostats, home security cameras, robotic vacuums, and other smart devices. The CTA expects smart-home devices to see the biggest gains over the next year, led by households planning to buy smart door locks, smart door bells, and smart home hubs for the first time.

“Americans are embracing AI tech in the home at unprecedented levels,” said Steve Koenig, vice president of research, CTA. “The dramatic rise in household ownership of intelligent devices like smart speakers shows American consumers endorse the benefits and convenience of artificial intelligence and voice recognition to help them with everyday tasks.”

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