Amazon unveiled the AI-powered voice assistant "Alexa+" in New York on the 26th (local time). Alexa is a voice assistant similar to Apple's "Siri" and underwent a major overhaul after 11 years since its initial launch in 2014.
Alexa+ incorporates generative AI into the existing Alexa, enabling natural conversations and is operated under a paid subscription plan of $19.99 a month. Amazon Prime members can use it for free.
Alexa+ performs various tasks such as purchasing concert tickets, ordering groceries, and making dinner reservations, and can also suggest recipes tailored to user preferences.
Additionally, it can organize handwritten documents or remember information, and is connected to Amazon's doorbell "Ring," showing camera recordings. Furthermore, it departs from the previous method of Alexa, which could only handle one request at a time, and can now understand and process consecutive requests, serving as an "agent" without user intervention.
Alexa+ is based on several models, including "Claude," an AI model from the startup Anthropic, which is viewed as a rival to OpenAI. Amazon has invested $8 billion in Anthropic and plans to integrate Alexa into its smart home device "Echo" to boost device sales.