Separate from Amazon Prime, Amazon is releasing a more conversational, AI-powered version of Alexa for a monthly subscription charge. This effort is an attempt to compete with chatbots such as Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
According to a CNBC story on Wednesday, Amazon.com intends to charge a monthly subscription fee to defray the expense of technology and will launch a more conversational AI-powered version of its Alexa voice assistant later this year.
According to a source citing people with knowledge of the company’s plans, Alexa will not be included in the popular $139 annual Prime offering, even though the e-commerce giant has not yet set a pricing for the new services.
Regarding the report, Amazon chose not to comment.
In September, the business announced that it was developing a generative AI-powered Alexa in response to increasing competition from chatbots developed by OpenAI and Alphabet’s Google.
In its annual shareholder letter, which was released last month, it reaffirmed the goal and stated that it was developing GenAI applications for all of its consumer companies, including a more powerful Alexa.
Although the company launched Alexa in 2014, it hasn’t been able to consistently turn a profit. Instead, Alexa has driven customers to the company’s website, where they make additional purchases.
Meanwhile, OpenAI last week announced GPT-4o, a new AI model that lets users talk to ChatGPT and get real-time, lag-free responses. Additionally, it may stop ChatGPT.Last week, Google also unveiled enhanced iterations of its Gemini chatbot and enhancements to its search engine.
According to media sources, Apple is also preparing an AI makeover for its Siri virtual assistant, which is viewed as another laggard in the AI race.
According to the CNBC story, Amazon would improve Alexa using its own Titan large language model.
The company has placed significant wagers on AI, such as a $4 billion investment in Anthropic, a startup whose chatbot Claude faces off against ChatGPT.
Nevertheless, investors are concerned that Microsoft, the biggest player in the cloud arena, may lose a significant portion of its market share due to its early advantage in the AI race through its OpenAI investment.
