Alexa who?

The age of robots and automated personal assistants is upon us, with a universe of smart devices recently estimated at more than 6 billion. The virtual cavalcade of robots and artificial intelligence-powered technology introduced by Google, Amazon and others is becoming all the rage.

Smart home provider Vivint is entering the fray with its own AI solution designed especially for connected homes. Sky is a virtual assistant that Vivint is billing as the central cog in an automated home.

Introduced at CES in Las Vegas this week, the system will regulate home security, lighting and temperature to create what the company called a "single, cohesive experience."

It all begs the question: How does Sky differ from Amazon's Alexa or Echo, or Google's own smart-home solution, Home?

Those devices "are really good at voice recognition," Jeremy Warren, Vivint's chief technology officer, told CNBC in a recent interview. Warren said he uses an Alexa device himself.

Sky, however, is a "smart home assistant [that's] about understanding what's going on in your home," Warren said. "It's predictive, and tracks when you leave, when you come back, when you go on vacation. This is about the home and having the home help you manage it."