The Alexa Plus AI has been in early access for over a year, but this week all that changes, starting with a Thursday preview at Amazon's upcoming Super Bowl ad featuring Chris Hemsworth. Let's look at how our phones and smart speakers are getting this smart voice assistant upgrade.
I've been reviewing beta Alexa Plus over the past year and found the AI upgrade to be highly conversational and more capable than the old Alexa, bringing new ties to third-party apps like Uber and Ticketmaster. Starting on Tuesday, Amazon has completed its rollout and made Alexa Plus available to anyone who wants to try it in the US.
It's no wonder Hemsworth got worried at just how responsive the voice assistant could be. The rogue AI scenarios in the Super Bowl ad playfully acknowledge people's fears over inviting generative artificial intelligence into their private lives as the Australian actor gets hacked by a garage door, drowned in his pool and mauled by an Alexa-ordered bear.
Amazon makes it clear that no damage was ultimately done.
"By casting Chris Hemsworth, the last guy on the planet you'd expect to be scared of anything, we were able to lean into the conversation and put people at ease through humor," said Jo Shoesmith, Amazon's global chief creative officer.
Alexa Plus arrives with a free version and more
Alexa Plus does feel significantly different, but it depends how you use voice assistants in general. Amazon
So, what does this new Alexa Plus expansion -- available now -- include? The most interesting part is several tiers of the AI's service, starting with a free version that anyone can use as long as they have the Alexa app downloaded or visit the web portal Alexa.com (which we've also tried).
You won't get any advanced Amazon Echo capabilities that way, but you will be able to test out Alexa's conversational AI and see how similar it is to talking to a human. Alexa Plus errs on the side of chatty, but its ability to summarize answers, stop in mid-conversation and answer follow-up questions is welcome. As I've said before, it feels like what voice assistants were always supposed to be like.
"Alexa Plus is built to make customers' lives meaningfully easier -- and that starts with conversation. Because Alexa Plus lives in the middle of everyday life, it has to be natural and trustworthy," Panos Panay, senior vice president at Amazon Devices & Services, tells CNET. "The Super Bowl is the perfect moment to introduce this evolution at scale."
... continue reading