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Amazon’s Alexa adds AI personalization. It learns preferences, voices and habits.
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Smart Briefing delivers daily news tailored to user interests.
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Shopping Scout tracks offers and provides customized recommendations while shopping.
Amazon has been working on integrating AI with Alexa, the popular voice assistant, along with some interesting features. It will be called Alexa Plus and is rumored to cost $10 per month. The new features sound perfect for technology enthusiasts and casual users alike.
Smarter briefing
This is evident from leaked documents reported by the Washington PostOne of the new AI-powered features will be the Smart Briefing feature, which will give you a daily overview of summarized news articles based on user preferences. As a tech nerd, I can already imagine starting my day with questions Alexa what the latest news in technology is. It will be able to respond with a concise summary of the latest tech articles, tailored to my niche interests.
More personalized interactions
This is one I’m looking forward to the most. The new Alexa Plus with AI will offer personalized and smoother interactions, perhaps even rivaling them ChatGPT voice. Since it uses AI, it will have features that allow it to remember users’ responses so it can be more useful later.
For example, you can ask Alexa to remind you of your upcoming appointment. With the new Alexa Plus, it not only sets the reminder but also remembers your preferences from previous interactions. If you’ve indicated that you prefer reminders 30 minutes before an event, Alexa can automatically adjust the reminder time accordingly in future cases.
The leaked documents state that Alexa Plus will learn to recognize the voices of new users and ask users questions to learn more about them, in order to be more personalized and helpful later. “What do you like to do in your spare time?” the device may ask. If you mention that you enjoy gaming, it may suggest popular games or ask you at a later date if you’ve purchased any recent games.
Katie Rees / How-to-Geek
With his improved AI capabilitiesAlexa Plus can make personalized recommendations for other entertainment options like music and movies, suggest recipes based on your dietary preferences, and even help with trip planning by recommending places to visit based on your budget and interests.
Complex tasks, all with a single prompt
It looks like the new Alexa Plus can also handle more complex tasks, like composing a professional email, scheduling a phone call, and shopping on Amazon, all with a single prompt. It could also eliminate the need say Alexa repeatedly during a call, providing a smoother experience.
Additionally, users can create custom routines that combine multiple actions into one command, such as saying, “Start my day,” which could prompt Alexa to read the daily news, review your scheduled appointments or reminders, and turn on your phone. favorite music or podcast while you get ready for the day.
Shop smarter with Shopping Scout
I’m not surprised by it Amazons focus on the shopping featuresespecially among impulse buyers. Based on the leaked document, you can ask questions like: “Do you have any new offers for 2TB hard drives?” and get even more specific with questions like, “What color options are available?” Shopping Scout, a new feature, alerts you to sales based on your store viewing history. This is definitely something that will come in handy during your Christmas shopping.
Additionally, as previously mentioned, the integration of voice profiles means that Alexa can recognize individual users and provide a more customized shopping experience for each member of the household. This can include remembering who prefers certain brands or styles, making it easier for families to shop together without confusion.
Alexa Plus sounds like a big upgrade and I can’t wait to see it in action. From personalized interactions to smarter shopping, Amazon is making Alexa more than just a voice assistant: it becomes one that remembers and understands your routine. And while the monthly fee may give you some pause, the idea of a smarter, more intuitive assistant by my side could be worth every penny. I guess we’ll have to wait and see, because unfortunately Alexa Plus is delayed until 2025.
If you can’t wait, here ten things you can do to improve your Amazon Alexa experience today.