Amazon's Upgraded Alexa Plus: Release Date, Pricing, and New Features
posted Sunday Sep 1, 2024 by Scott Ertz
Last year, Amazon announced that an upgrade was coming to the company's digital assistant, Alexa. The move came at a strange time for the company, as Alexa's future was up in the air. The new upgrade will focus on producing answers that the company hopes will be more relevant using generative AI. Unlike the standard Alexa service, however, this one will not be made available for free. But, if the rumors are correct, this upcharged service will be available soon.
New Alexa features coming to the service
Amazon is set to revolutionize its Alexa voice assistant with new generative AI features. This upgrade will allow Alexa to understand and respond to complex requests, maintaining the context of previous interactions for a more seamless user experience. Additionally, Alexa will be able to create custom chatbots, generate music, and offer immersive quizzes, expanding its utility beyond traditional voice commands.
Another significant change is the introduction of a premium version of Alexa, known as Alexa Plus, which will come with advanced AI-powered features for a monthly fee. This version promises to deliver more personalized and intelligent responses, catering to users who seek a more sophisticated virtual assistant. The current version of Alexa is said to be rebranded as "classic Alexa," ensuring that users still have access to familiar functionalities while offering an option to upgrade for enhanced capabilities. These updates mark a significant step forward in making Alexa a more integral part of daily life, providing users with a smarter, more interactive experience.
Alexa Plus to use Anthropic's Claude AI
Amazon's decision to integrate Anthropic's Claude AI into Alexa Plus marks a significant shift from relying on its own AI technology. This move is aimed at enhancing the conversational abilities of Alexa, making it more intuitive and capable of handling complex queries. By leveraging Claude AI, Alexa Plus can provide more context-aware responses, maintaining the flow of conversation more naturally. This partnership is expected to elevate the user experience, offering a more sophisticated and interactive virtual assistant that can better understand and respond to user needs.
According to a report from Reuters, the company has eschewed its own technology because it simply didn't perform at a level that would work. The company does not deny these rumors that it is using other AI technology, but claims that it will also use its own technology.
Amazon uses many different technologies to power Alexa.
When it comes to machine learning models, we start with those built by Amazon, but we have used, and will continue to use, a variety of different models-including (Amazon AI model) Titan and future Amazon models, as well as those from partners-to build the best experience for customers.
When will the upgraded Alexa release?
The upgraded Alexa, featuring new generative AI capabilities, is expected to be released in October 2024. However, this date might be delayed if the voice assistant does not meet certain internal benchmarks. The new Alexa Plus is anticipated to cost between $5 to $10 per month. Amazon plans to finalize the pricing and naming details by release.
Despite the introduction of a subscription fee, the free version of Alexa will remain available. Amazon faces challenges in convincing users to pay for a service that has traditionally been free, especially with competition from other AI offerings like ChatGPT and Windows Copilot. Analysts estimate that if 10% of Alexa's 100 million active users upgrade, Amazon could generate $600 million to $1.2 billion in annual sales. The upgraded Alexa aims to attract subscribers with features like AI-generated news summaries, a chatbot for children, and conversational shopping tools.
