Alexa+ Innovations

Amazon introduced Alexa+, an enhanced version of its voice assistant, during its annual Devices and Services event. Alexa+ is now powered by generative artificial intelligence, which means it can interact more intelligently and helpfully with users. During the demonstration, it was shown how users can share documents with Alexa+, allowing the assistant to remember important details and answer questions about those documents. This represents a significant step forward in Alexa's functionality, making it more useful for users' daily needs.

Mara Segal, director of Alexa, provided several practical examples of how this new feature works. For instance, she asked Alexa+, "From grandma's zucchini bread recipe, how much oil did it need?" Alexa+ was able to extract the answer from the previously uploaded recipe. In another more complex example, a user can upload a document related to their Homeowners Association (HOA) guidelines and ask questions about those guidelines, which many people tend to overlook. This makes Alexa+ a valuable assistant for managing important information that might otherwise be forgotten.

Additionally, users can forward multiple emails from their child's school to Alexa+, which extracts and summarizes the essential information. Alexa+ can also help manage calendars, ensuring that users do not miss important school events. Amazon demonstrated several features of Alexa+ at the event, including the ability to jump to different movie scenes on Prime Video and control smart home devices. Users can also move music between speakers in different rooms, making the smart home experience even more seamless and integrated.