- Amazon has announced an AI-powered version of its Alexa voice assistant
- Alexa Plus is more conversational and can carry out complex tasks for you
- There’s no word yet on pricing or availability (this is breaking story)…
Live from its HQ in New York City Amazon is currently hosting its Alexa event where we’ve all been expecting the launch of a brand new Alexa voice assistant. And lo and behold, it’s finally here – Amazon has revealed Alexa Plus, its new AI-infused voice assistant.
The announcement marks the biggest upgrade for the voice assistant since its launch in 2014. And from Vice President of Devices and Services Panos Panay’s demonstration at Amazon’s devices event, it looks rather impressive. Need a concierge? Sous-chef? Assistant? House manager? Alexa Plus seemingly has it all covered.
One of the biggest improvements in Alexa Plus compared to the classic Alexa voice assistant is its impressive ability to hold conversations, which Panay seamlessly trialled live on stage at the event.
He asked “I’m a little bit nervous about it, but we’re about to do live demos. What do you think can go wrong?”. Alexa Plus responded with “With so many eyes on you, it’s natural to feel a bit nervous. As for what could go wrong, let’s just say Murphy’s Law is probably sharpening his pencil right now”. So it’s confirmed; Alexa Plus has a great sense of humor.
So what can Alexa Plus do? Powered by AI models from Anthropic and Amazon Nova, it looks impressively versatile. Some of the demos included smart home control, making restaurant reservations and connecting to your calendar to add events or send invites to friends. The AI assistant also has vision powers, which means it can scan documents and recall information later.
Naturally, there’s lots for kids too. Ademo video showed Alexa Plus answering questions and creating stories, which it was able to do before – but this time it includes AI-generated images, too.
This is a breaking story, we’ll update it with more information soon…
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rowan.davies@futurenet.com (Rowan Davies)
