Amazon to Launch AI-Enhanced Alexa with Monthly Subscription Fee, CNBC Reports

May 22, 2024, 01:08 PM

Amazon is planning to give its Alexa voice assistant a significant upgrade by integrating generative AI features and introducing a monthly subscription fee. The revamped version of Alexa, expected to be unveiled later this year, aims to enhance its conversational capabilities. This new subscription fee will be separate from the existing $139/year Prime membership. The move is seen as a strategy to offset the costs associated with the advanced AI technology and to remain competitive against other AI-powered voice assistants like Google Assistant and OpenAI's ChatGPT. Reports from CNBC indicate that there are over 71 million Alexa users who could be impacted by this change. CEO Andy Jassy, who joined Amazon in 2021, was reportedly unimpressed with Alexa’s capabilities, prompting the need for this update.