It’s no secret that Amazon is revamping Alexa with a touch of generative AI magic. But guess what? According to a new scoop from CNBC, this new and improved, “chattier” Alexa is going to come with a price tag! When Amazon rolls out this conversational whiz later this year, users will need to fork out for a separate subscription on top of their $139 Prime membership.
Now, this isn’t the first time Amazon has hinted at charging us for Alexa’s smarts. Last year, David Limp, the former SVP of devices and services at Amazon, spilled the beans to The Verge, saying they’d “end up charging something” for the AI-enhanced Alexa. He did assure us, though, that the current version of Alexa would still be free – phew!
Amazon, being its usual mysterious self, declined to comment further, simply pointing to previous reports and statements. But if you’re eager to try out Alexa’s shiny new brain, you’re in luck. Amazon is already letting some folks take it for a spin. Just say, “Alexa, let’s chat,” to your Echo device, and Amazon will let you know when you can join the preview party.
At their device showcase last September, Amazon unveiled the souped-up Alexa, powered by a large language model (LLM). This upgrade means Alexa can understand conversational phrases better and handle multiple requests in one go. In a letter to shareholders in April, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy boasted about plans for “an even more intelligent and capable Alexa.”
Since ChatGPT burst onto the scene in late 2022, Amazon, Google, and Apple have been in a race to pump up their digital assistants with generative AI. This means assistants that can include context, switch up their tone, and sound more like us humans. Rumor has it that a major AI update to Siri is on the horizon, and we might hear more at WWDC next month. Meanwhile, Google’s new Gemini AI assistant has already hit the market, offering a spiffy alternative to the standard Google Assistant, although it’s missing a few features like routines and interpreter mode for now.
