DIGITAL MAKEOVER

Alexa got an Al brain transplant. How smart is it now?

- KEVIN ROOSE

For the last few years, I've been waiting for Alexa’s AI glow-up. I've been a loyal user of Alexa, the voice assistant that powers Amazon's home devices and smart speakers, for more than a decade. I have five Alexa-enabled speakers scattered throughout my house, and while I don’t use them for anything complicated — playing music, setting timers and getting the weather forecast are basically it — they're good at what they do.

But since 2023, when ChatGPT added an AI voice mode that could answer questions in a fluid, conversational way, it has been obvious that Alexa would need a brain transplant — a new AI system built around the same Large Language Models, or LLMs, that power ChatGPT and other products. LLM-based systems are smarter and more versatile than older systems. They can handle more complex requests, making them an obvious pick for a next-generation voice assistant.

Amazon agrees. For the last few years, the company has been working feverishly to upgrade the Al inside Alexa. It has been a slog. Replacing the Al technology inside a voice assistant isn’t as easy as swapping in a new model, and the Alexa remodel was reportedly delayed by internal struggles and technical challenges along the way. LLMs also aren’t a perfect match for this kind of product, which not only needs to work with tons of preexisting services and millions of Alexa-enabled devices but also needs to reliably perform basic tasks.

But finally, the new Alexa - known as Alexa+ - is here. It's a big, ambitious remodel that is trying to marry the conversational skills of generative AI chatbots with the daily tasks that the old Alexa did well.