Smart home speaker may have saved woman from domestic attack

A smart home speaker has saved a woman from what could have been a potentially deadly confrontation, ABC News reports.

Police in New Mexico said Eduardo Barros was house-sitting with his girlfriend and daughter when the couple got into a fight. Things turned physical fast, with Barros brandishing a firearm, threatening to kill his girlfriend.

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He supposedly asked her, "Did you call the sheriffs?" and that's when the speaker sprung into action, recognizing it as a voice command, and called 911.

A SWAT team descended on the scene, taking Barros into custody. Authorities praised the newly popular tech device, saying the accidental vocal command "helped save a life."

This isn't the first time a hands-free personal assistant made popular by Google and Amazon has been in the news. Police are hoping an Amazon Echo might be able to help solve a murder by retrieving recorded audio from the crime scene.

By the way, many smartphones are also equipped with the ability to call 911 based on vocal prompts.