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Amazon Alexa

Amazon’s Alexa smart assistant seems to be everywhere. Since it was first announced in 2014 with the original Amazon Echo speaker, the voice assistant has gained thousands of new “skills” and comes in a variety of form factors – from miniature speakers to ones with a video camera and a touchscreen. Alexa has been integrated into a wide range of devices including cars, fridges, smartwatches, lights, and security cameras.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Amazon to introduce premium Alexa-powered hardware.

Panos Panay told Bloomberg they’re re-engineering Alexa devices for Alexa Plus with new designs and materials, new silicon with edge processing, and better sound. There will also be a new “signature” tier, with the first devices arriving this fall.

He confirmed upgrades to Echo Frames and Echo Buds are coming and hinted at AR glasses and a new “wrist-worn device.” He didn’t rule out a home robot or a smartphone but said they’re focusing on gadgets “that matter the most.”

Inside Amazon's Plan to Reshape Its Alexa Devices Business

[bloomberg.com]

Amazon is ending the option to not send Echo voice recordings to the cloudAmazon is ending the option to not send Echo voice recordings to the cloud
All this bad AI is wrecking a whole generation of gadgets

We were promised multimodal, natural language, AI-powered everything. We got nothing of the sort.

David Pierce
Amazon’s Panos Panay on the long road to Alexa’s AI overhaul

After nearly 20 years at Microsoft, Panay was ready to dive in.

Nilay Patel
With Alexa Plus, Amazon finally reinvents its best product

The new voice assistant has been a long time coming, but it won’t get here all at once.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Alexa Plus is much easier to chat with.

I grabbed a few minutes with the new Alexa at Amazon’s event and was impressed. Gone is the need for “Alexa speak.” Instead, I created a morning wake-up routine just by talking about what I wanted, and controlled several smart home devices without knowing their names or locations.

Of all the new features Amazon announced for the voice assistant, talking to Alexa and having it reliably understand you is easily the biggest improvement.

The high stakes for AI AlexaThe high stakes for AI Alexa
David Pierce
Amazon CEO says ‘beautiful’ new Alexa hardware is coming this fallAmazon CEO says ‘beautiful’ new Alexa hardware is coming this fall
Hands-on with Alexa Plus in the smart homeHands-on with Alexa Plus in the smart home
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Alexa Plus leaves behind Amazon’s earliest Echo devicesAlexa Plus leaves behind Amazon’s earliest Echo devices
Amazon is launching Alexa.com and new app for Alexa PlusAmazon is launching Alexa.com and new app for Alexa Plus
Alexa Plus’ AI upgrades cost $19.99, but it’s all free with PrimeAlexa Plus’ AI upgrades cost $19.99, but it’s all free with Prime
Todd Haselton
Todd Haselton
We can’t try Alexa Plus ourselves in the demo area.

We’re down on the demo floor now, and we were hoping to try out the new AI-powered assistant. There are six rooms, one with a Fire TV and the rest with Echo Show 21 screens. But all the demos are being run by Amazon reps.

Brandon Widder
Brandon Widder
Alexa engagement continues to grow.

That’s according to Amazon’s new devices and service chief Panos Panay, who just took the stage at Amazon’s big Alexa event in New York City.

The engagement metrics he’s referencing are a little unclear, but he says customers used Amazon’s virtual assistant 20 percent more in 2024 than they did in 2023.

Image: Chris Welch / The Verge
Amazon announces AI-powered Alexa PlusAmazon announces AI-powered Alexa Plus
Amazon Alexa event live blog: all the news from the keynoteAmazon Alexa event live blog: all the news from the keynote
Todd Haselton, Jennifer Pattison Tuohy and 1 more
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
We’re on the ground at Amazon’s event.

The show is set to start at 10AM ET. We’re in a (chilly) line outside, waiting to get live blogging. Follow along for all the big announcements.

Selfie of Jennifer Pattison Tuohy and Chris Welch standing outside a building with an Amazon sign.
Image: Jen Tuohy / The Verge
What to expect from Amazon’s big Alexa event this week

A smarter Alexa, new Echo hardware, and a lot of Panos Panay. We’re pumped!

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Amazon’s revamped Alexa might launch over a month after its announcement eventAmazon’s revamped Alexa might launch over a month after its announcement event
There’s a hidden message in Amazon’s event invitesThere’s a hidden message in Amazon’s event invites
Amazon announces February product eventAmazon announces February product event
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Google’s Gemini is already winning the next-gen assistant warsGoogle’s Gemini is already winning the next-gen assistant wars
Jess Weatherbed
Jess Weatherbed
Amazon and BMW’s AI voice assistant is... still coming.

The custom Alexa voice assistant for BMW vehicles was initially announced in 2022, but progress has been slow in an attempt to build it around Amazon’s more capable LLM-powered Alexa.

Amazon says its “LLM-powered capabilities” will start rolling out to select BMW models this year that allow users to “plan trips and navigate more conversationally.”

CES 2025: Key announcements from Amazon

[www.aboutamazon.com]

Amazon’s Echo Show 5 and Show 8 are up to 50 percent off right nowAmazon’s Echo Show 5 and Show 8 are up to 50 percent off right now
Every smart home device that works with Matter

All the Matter-compatible devices you can buy, plus the latest on the smart home standard backed by Apple, Amazon, Google, and Samsung.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Amazon to invest another $4 billion in OpenAI rival AnthropicAmazon to invest another $4 billion in OpenAI rival Anthropic
The government’s plan to break up GoogleThe government’s plan to break up Google
Amazon’s new Echo Show 21 has a huge screen and built-in smart home hubAmazon’s new Echo Show 21 has a huge screen and built-in smart home hub
Alexa may get smarter with more APIs rather than more AIAlexa may get smarter with more APIs rather than more AI
Alexa at 10: Amazon’s assistant is a winner and a failureAlexa at 10: Amazon’s assistant is a winner and a failure
Amazon’s Echo Spot alarm clock is on sale with a free color smart bulbAmazon’s Echo Spot alarm clock is on sale with a free color smart bulb
Amazon’s new Alexa has reportedly slipped to 2025Amazon’s new Alexa has reportedly slipped to 2025
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy says the revamped, AI-powered Alexa will arrive in the “near future.”

Jassy, from today’s Q3 2024 earnings call:

We continue to re-architect the brain of Alexa with a new set of foundation models that we’ll share with customers in the near future.

The supercharged Alexa was first announced in September 2023.

The Alexa Skills revolution that wasn’t

Ten years ago, Amazon imagined a future beyond apps — and it had the idea basically right. But the perfect ambient computer remains frustratingly far away.

David Pierce
The Amazon Echo graveyard

The Echo ecosystem has seen its fair share of failures while trying to popularize Amazon’s Alexa smart assistant.

Andrew Liszewski
Alexa, thank you for the music

When dealing with an aging parent, Alexa was a great help — in both practical and emotionally important ways.

Barbara Krasnoff
Alexa, where’s my Star Trek Computer?

When Amazon launched its Alexa voice assistant, it envisioned a computer platform that could do anything for you. A decade later, the company is still trying to build it.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
The future of the Kindle with Panos PanayThe future of the Kindle with Panos Panay
Play
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Apparently, “Remarkable Alexa” can’t reliably turn on the lights.

In another WSJ report about Amazon’s struggles to reinvent Alexa with AI, the newspaper says it’s now going backward:

In some tests, for example, it lost the ability to turn on the lights with 90%-plus reliability.

Merging the new with the old was always going to be a challenge. Amazon has now charged one of Alexa’s creators, Rohit Prasad, with solving this mess.

The Man Tasked With Rebooting Amazon AI

[WSJ]

Amazon’s new Alexa voice assistant will use Claude AIAmazon’s new Alexa voice assistant will use Claude AI

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