So, it’s finally here – just over 11 years since Amazon‘s Alexa voice assistant sparked a new (and eventually underwhelming) age of voice assistants, it’s just been given a major AI brain transplant.
The new Alexa Plus is rolling out soon in the US, with international availability still unknown. But what exactly can Amazon’s new voice assistant do, and will it actually be worth the monthly subscription (or signing up to Amazon Prime) to get early access?
We’ve broken down everything you need to know about Alexa Plus below, from pricing to new features and what this all means for classic Alexa. Strangely, Amazon didn’t announce any new Echo speakers at its big reveal today, but there was more than enough Alexa news for us to chew over – so let’s dive into Alexa’s biggest upgrade for over a decade…
1. It’s Alexa’s biggest ever upgrade
Since Alexa landed in 2014, we’ve seen the voice assistant get dozens of upgrades –from improvements to its listening powers to an ability to an ability to recognize individual voices. But it’s no overstatement to say that Alexa Plus is its biggest by far – it’s really a reinvention of the voice assistant.
Powered by models from Anthropic (the maker of Claude) and Amazon’s own Nova, Alexa Plus has an ability to remember personal information and context. Broadly speaking, Amazon used an orchestra conductor metaphor to explain the changes.
As Amazon SVP of devices and services Panos Panay said: “The new Alexa knows almost every instrument in your life, your schedule, smart home, devices, and people you’re connected to, and brings them together into what is an incredible symphony.”
We’ll be the judges of that when we get to try it in the real world, but that won’t be too long a wait (in the US, at least)…
2. It works on (nearly) every Echo device
Judging by the early Alexa Plus demos, the best experience for the AI assistant will be on Amazon’s latest smart displays. That’s why the early access will be coming to the Echo Show 8, 10, 15 or 21 (whether you already own one, or buy one now).
But it is fortunately also backwards compatible with most Echos from the last decade, except some of the very early ones. The only devices Alexa Plus doesn’t work on are the Echo Dot 1st Gen, Echo 1st Gen, Echo Plus 1st Gen, Echo Tap, Echo Show 1st Gen, Echo Show 2nd Gen, and Echo Spot 1st Gen.
You can also test-drive Alexa Plus in a web browser, the Alexa app and compatible Fire TV devices and Fire tablets. Unfortunately, Alexa Plus isn’t available on devices that are branded “Alexa Built-in” (like headphones and smartwatches), but Amazon said it’s hoping to bring the assistant to more devices “in the future”.
3. Alexa Plus is pricey, unless you’re on Prime
Alexa Plus will get an initial rollout in the US over “next few weeks” and will cost $19.99 per month – or will be free if you have a Prime subscription. Considering Prime currently costs $14.99 a month (or $139 annually) in the US, that means there’s no reason not to get Prime. Which is clearly Amazon’s plan.
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While Alexa Plus will apparently work on “almost every” Alexa device so far, the initial rollout will be on the Echo Show 8, 10, 15, and 21 from next month. If you buy one of those smart displays now, you’ll get early access to Alexa Plus. Amazon sure does know how to trigger our impulse buy finger.
Sadly, there’s no news yet about an international rollout for Alexa Plus, but we’ll update this page as soon as we hear anything official.
4. It works with Ring cameras – and could upgrade your smart home
Amazon wants Alexa Plus to be the glue that gets you using more of its devices –particularly the ones built for your smart home.
If you have a Ring doorbell or security camera (plus a subscription), Alexa Plus can provide summaries of detected camera events and show you footage (for example, a package being delivered) on compatible Echo Show displays.
This also integrates with Ring’s Smart Video Search, letting you ask natural questions like “did someone take out the garbage bins?” or “when was the last time the dog went out for a walk”? Hopefully, the answer won’t be “last week”.
But even if you only have an Echo Show or smart speaker, Alexa Plus promises to be a helpful (and much more conversational) voice assistant. You can move music from room to room (for example, “play the music upstairs”) or create new smart home Routines by voice without delving into an app.
If you have a Fire TV device, Alexa Plus will also play nicely with Prime Video – for example, letting you quickly jump to a particular scene that you’ve described.
5. Alexa Plus wants to run your home life
If you’re prepared to share private information with Alexa Plus, like calendars and documents, then it can also act a bit like a family assistant.
The calendar functionality certainly looks helpful – in a demo (below), Alexa was asked to recall the the dates of the presenter’s daughter’s soccer practices (from a previously shared document) and add the events to her calendar.
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There’s seemingly no limit to the types of things you can upload, although it isn’t yet clear what the ceiling is on the amount of uploads. Amazon says you can share emails, manuals, family recipes, study materials and more.
Clearly, the more you share, the more you’ll get out of Alexa Plus – and that’s going to be a personal decision for many. Some examples included asking how much oil you need for your grandma’s favorite zucchini bread, or simply “do I need to bring anything to the school fundraiser?” based on some emails you’ve shared.
6. It’s an upgrade for Kids Plus subscribers too
Amazon Echo speakers have become family favorites for many, so Amazon’s used Alexa Plus to upgrade its Kids Plus subscription offerings – that costs $5.99 / £4.99 a month separately, but you’ll get a one month free trial with Alexa Plus early access.
Two features called “Stories with Alexa” and “Explore with Alexa” are designed to entertain your younglings and spark their creativity. A video showed a child chatting to Alexa and asking it questions – this was already possible, but Alexa Plus takes things up a notch with generative AI visuals and more.
Naturally, it’ll help if you have an Echo Show device with a screen, which is something that Amazon is using Alexa Plus to push us towards – if you buy a new Echo Show 8, 10, 15, or 21, you’ll get early access to its new voice assistant.
7. Alexa Plus remembers your preferences
One of the biggest upgrades with Alexa Plus – and something that could push more people towards a Prime subscription – is its ability to remember information and personalize its responses.
For example, it’ll be able to offer personalized news briefings based on your specific interests (gadgets, obviously). Its ability to understand and remember your family’s dietary preferences and allergies also sounds particularly handy if you like to use it for recipes and shopping.
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Not everything its built around voice interactions either. If you have an Echo Show smart display, you’ll also seemingly be able to track topics like deal alerts or a fresh drop of tickets for your favorite artist.
Inevitably, the more you share, the more functionality you’ll unlock – so it could be a case of finding that sweet spot between helpful features and privacy.
8. It’ll connect to a lot more services soon
This is clearly just the start of Amazon’s Alexa Plus ambitions – and the demos showed how much the tech giant wants it to plug into third-party services to make it your one-stop, conversational voice assistant.
For starters, the connectivity will be fairly simple, like connecting to OpenTable to make a dinner reservation or booking an Uber for you while texting your friend to let them know your ETA.
But looking ahead, Amazon wants Alexa Plus to let you conversationally create and tweak grocery lists on the fly, get them automatically edited based on your dietary requirements, and integrate closely with the likes of Grubhub and Whole Foods.
In the not-too-distant future, Alexa Plus will also apparently work with specialized AI agents to help you life run smoothly in the background. We’ll see how that all works in practice, but Alexa Plus could clearly become a big player in the world of AI voice assistants.
9. It won’t replace classic Alexa (yet)
Not everyone wants their voice assistant to get an AI brain transplant – and if all of this sounds a bit much, then the earlier version of Alexa will still be available on your older devices (for now, at least).
Amazon would rather you upgraded to Alexa Plus, of course. It says “we’re positive you’ll love all that Alexa+ has to offer”, but that “if you prefer using the original Alexa, it will remain available on your devices”.
That’s good news if you prefer its simpler functionality, but we’d say the clock is now ticking on that old-school version of Alexa…
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mark.wilson@futurenet.com (Mark Wilson)
