Microsoft’s Siri competitor will be going public in April

Video game fans became giddy last fall upon hearing that Microsoft was developing a Siri competitor for Windows Phone code-named Cortana, after the AI companion of protagonist Master Chief in the Halo series. Now, it looks like Microsoft is going all in on that sci-fi vision for its personal assistant: Jen Taylor, the actress who played Cortana, is onboard to become the voice behind the information service, Microsoft blog MSFTnerd reported Thursday.

Cortana will bow in beta form on Nokia’s Lumia devices in April, according to a report from Microsoft watchers MSFTnerd. The Siri competitor will feature the voice of Jen Taylor, the same actress who played the eponymous artificial intelligence companion in Microsoft’s blockbuster Halo franchise.  Unlike competitive offerings from Apple and Google, Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft is said to be planning a rollout that extends beyond mobile devices. After jumping from Windows Phone to iOS in the fall of 2014, Cortana will makes its way to the company’s Xbox and Windows platforms next year.