Amazon Unveils A 'smarter And More Conversational' Alexa Amid AI Race Among Tech Companies

Amazon has unveiled a series of gadgets and updates to its popular Alexa voice assistant, giving it more AI-generating features to better compete with other tech companies launching flashy chatbots.

At a demonstration Wednesday at the company's second headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, Amazon's head of devices, Dave Limp, said the latest voice model will allow consumers to have more human conversations with a "smarter and more conversational" Alexa.

The company demonstrated a range of interactions through pre-recorded videos and a live demo in which Alexa responded to commands, wrote a poem, offered date night ideas and talked about a football game. Limp also demonstrated the voice assistant's ability to compose a text message, though the exchange with Alexa included some awkward pauses in which she had to repeat some commands twice before getting a response.

The company is also working on a "conversation-to-conversation" model that would, for example, allow Alexa to display human characteristics such as smiles and "woo-woo" during a conversation.

Amazon hosts its annual gadget event to showcase new gadgets to journalists and industry insiders before they officially hit the market. Among other things, the tech giant also offered a paid emergency service for Alexa that allows users to call for help without a phone, new Echo smart speakers and Amazon Fire tablets for children.

In August, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced that Limp would step down after nearly 14 years at the company, where he oversaw innovation in Kindle readers, Amazon's Fire TV and Echo devices. Although the gadget division has produced a large number of gadgets over the years, it has not caught up with all of them. Think Amazon's limited-edition Alexa-powered microwave oven or the Astro roving robot, launching in 2021 with a starting price of $1,000.

The hardware division faced company-wide layoffs at Amazon a few months ago. The company has not announced a replacement for Limp.

According to Insider Intelligence, Amazon leads the US smart speaker market with approximately 64 million monthly users of its Echo devices. However, the market research firm predicts that the devices will lose some market share in the next few years due to the increasing number of smart speakers. Consumers are increasingly using their smartphones to access voice assistants rather than smart speakers.

For years, Amazon tried to increase consumer purchases through Echo devices, a dream that didn't quite materialize.

Amazon reported that 50% of Alexa customers used its devices to shop last year. Limp said Wednesday that more and more customers are using Alexa to shop each year. According to Adobe Analytics, consumers often use their smart speakers to play music, check the weather, and set alarms and reminders.

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