Facebook picks up voice recognition firm Wit.ai in wearables push

Social network may be looking to add voice system like Siri or Cortana

Facebook has bought a company called Wit.ai, which makes voice recognition software for wearable devices.

The acquisition is the latest in a series of investments by Facebook to strengthen its position in the wearables ecosystem.

It is possible that Facebook is looking to add a voice technology system like Apple's Siri or Microsoft's Cortana.

Wit.ai launched 18 months ago and offers an open system that developers and hardware makers can use on their devices.

The company said in a blog post that it already has 6,000 developers and that its software is installed on hundreds of devices and apps.

Wit.ai explained that the Facebook acquisition will not affect current customers, who will retain a consistent experience, and that Facebook users will benefit from the addition.

"Wit.ai is joining Facebook! It is an incredible acceleration in the execution of our vision," the firm said.

"Facebook has the resources and talent to help us take the next step. Facebook's mission is to connect everyone and build amazing experiences for the over 1.3 billion people on the platform.

"Technology that understands natural language is a big part of that, and we think we can help."

V3 asked Facebook for more information on its plans for the Wit.ai technology, but had not received a reply at the time of publication.

The social network has been on something of a spending spree in recent months, buying virtual reality headset business Oculus Rift for $2bn, messaging outfit WhatsApp for $22bn and server security firm PrivateCore for an undisclosed sum.