According to the latest quarterly research from Strategy Analytics, global smart speaker shipments grew 197% year-over-year to reach a record 22.7 million units in quarter three of 2018, putting the market on track to surpass 100 million units in use during the final quarter of the year. Apple’s HomePod continues to slowly gain ground.
Per the research group, 1.1 million units of the wireless speaker were sold in the third quarter, giving Apple 4.8% of the global smart speaker market.
Amazon remained the number one ranked vendor in the third quarter with 32% share followed by Google at 23% share. China’s Baidu was the biggest mover in the quarter increasing its share from just 1% in quarter two of 2018 to 8% in quarter three of 2018.
“The number of smart speakers in use globally will crash through the 100 million unit barrier this month and exceed 125 million by the end of the year,” says David Mercer, vice president at Strategy Analytics. “The market has reached this key milestone faster than pretty much any other consumer technology device to have launched over the past decade. Our extensive consumer research shows that voice-first products have well and truly dropped any gimmick status they may have had and are becoming a permanent fixture in many homes.”
