Amazon has unveiled the Alexa+. The announcement comes as the smart speaker market is projected to reach $23.3 billion by 2025, according to recent industry forecasts.
The tech giant is looking to exploit the recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) that have led to a huge growth in software that is capable of natural-sounding conversations – with apps such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek. These AI models have demonstrated unprecedented capabilities in understanding context and maintaining coherent dialogues, revolutionizing human-computer interaction.
Alexa+ is an overhauled version of its virtual assistant and it told a launch event in New York that it wished to be “your new best friend in the digital world”. The personification of AI assistants has become a key marketing strategy, with studies showing that users form stronger connections with assistants that display personality traits.
It will be included for free in Prime subscriptions when it launches next month – but to non-members it will cost $19.99 per month. Amazon Prime currently boasts over 200 million subscribers worldwide, potentially giving Alexa+ an immediate massive user base.
Amazon’s head of devices and services Panos Panay said that Alexa+ would remember information – meaning that it would recommend appropriate recipes if you told it that you were a gluten-intolerant vegan, for example. This contextual memory feature represents a significant advancement over previous generations of voice assistants, which typically treated each interaction as isolated.
He also promised that there will be “no more Alexa speak”, enabling users to talk to it more conversationally than previously possible. Natural language processing has improved dramatically in recent years, with the latest AI models achieving near-human levels of comprehension in certain domains.
However, experts have suggested that consumers may not be able to see past their limited expectations of Amazon devices. Research indicates that despite widespread adoption, many users only utilize a fraction of smart speakers’ capabilities.
“Smart speakers are found in one in four UK homes, yet many users treat them as nothing more than expensive kitchen timers,” Ed Freed, from the marketing agency Rapp UK, told BBC News. Studies show that setting timers, playing music, and checking weather remain the most common use cases for smart speakers, with more advanced features largely underutilized.
“Ultimately, the most logical place for a truly personal AI assistant is on your phone, not on your countertop.” Mobile devices continue to dominate as the primary platform for digital assistant interactions, with over 70% of AI assistant usage occurring on smartphones.
Dr. Richard Whittle, of the University of Salford’s Business School, explained that the new features were “long overdue”. The voice assistant market has seen rapid innovation in recent years, with competitors continuously raising consumer expectations.
“Amazon is hoping its upgraded Alexa will challenge Copilot, Google Assistant and Siri, all of whom use new LLM (large language model) technology,” he said. “When users can now chat naturally to their AI assistants, Alexa’s once leading voice interaction seems narrow and rigid.” Large language models have fundamentally transformed AI capabilities, enabling more sophisticated reasoning and knowledge retrieval.
The launch comes at a pivotal moment for Amazon‘s hardware division, which reportedly faced significant challenges in recent years. Industry analysts estimate that Echo devices have historically been sold at or below cost, with the company prioritizing ecosystem integration over hardware profits.
Privacy concerns remain a significant consideration for many potential users. Recent surveys indicate that approximately 60% of consumers have reservations about always-on listening devices in their homes, despite manufacturer assurances about data security and privacy controls.
Alexa+ will integrate with over 140,000 smart home devices, significantly more than competing platforms. This extensive compatibility gives Amazon a strategic advantage in the increasingly competitive smart home ecosystem, where interoperability has been a persistent challenge.
Early reactions from technology reviewers highlight improvements in conversation flow and contextual understanding, though some note that real-world performance often differs from controlled demonstrations. Initial testing suggests a 40% reduction in misunderstood commands compared to the previous version.
The subscription model represents a shift in Amazon’s strategy, potentially generating significant recurring revenue if adoption is strong. Market analysts project that if just 10% of current Echo device owners subscribe to the premium service, it could generate over $500 million in annual revenue.
