Subj : Amazon says you might have to pay for Alexas AI features in the f To : All From : TechnologyDaily Date : Tue Sep 26 2023 15:30:04 Amazon says you might have to pay for Alexas AI features in the future Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2023 14:08:04 +0000 Description: Could a superhuman AI-powered Alexa be worth paying extra for? Amazon believes it will FULL STORY ====================================================================== Amazon might be mulling a subscription charge for Alexas AI features at some point down the road though that may not be for some time yet, by the sound of things. This nugget of info emerged from a Bloomberg interview with Dave Limp, who is SVP of Amazon Devices & Services currently, though he is leaving the company later this year. (Whispers on the grapevine are that Panos Panay, a big-hitting exec who just left Microsoft , will replace Limp). Bloombergs Dave Lee broadly observed that the future of Alexa could involve a more sophisticated AI assistant, but one that device owners would need to fork out to subscribe to. This would be an avenue of monetization, giving that the previous hope for spinning out some extra cash having folks order more stuff online using Alexa, bolstering revenue that way just hasnt worked out for Amazon (not in any meaningful fashion, at least). After Limp talked about Amazon pushing forward using generative AI to build out Alexas features, Lee fired out a question about whether therell come a time when those Alexa AI capabilities wont be free and are offered via a subscription instead. Limp replied in no uncertain terms: Yes, we absolutely think that, noting the costs of training the AI model (properly), and then adding: But before we would start charging customers for this and I believe we will it has to be remarkable. Analysis: Superhuman assistance? Dave Limp (above) is currently SVP of Amazon Devices & Services, but is leaving the company later this year. (Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff) So, theres your weighty caveat. Limp makes it clear, in fact, that expectations would be built around the realization of a superhuman assistant if Amazon was to charge for Alexas AI chops as outlined. Limp clarifies that Alexa, as it is now, almost certainly wont be charged for, and that the contemporary Alexa will remain free. He also suggested that Amazon has no idea of a pricing scheme yet for any future AI-powered Alexa that is super-smart. This means the paid-for Alexa AI skills were talking about would be highly prized and a long way down the road for development with Amazons assistant. This isnt anything that will remotely happen soon, but what it is, nonetheless, is a clear enough signal that this path of monetization is one Amazon is fully considering traveling down. Eventually. As to exactly what timeframe we might be talking about, Limp couldnt be drawn to commit beyond it not being decades or years away, with the latter perhaps hinting that maybe this could happen sooner than we may imagine. We think itll be a difficult sell for Amazon in the nearer-term, though. Especially as plans are currently being pushed through to shove adverts into Prime Video early next year , and youll have to pay to avoid watching those ads. (As a subscriber to Prime, even though youre paying for the video streaming service and other benefits youll still get adverts unless you stump up an extra fee). If Amazon is seen to be watering down the value proposition of its services too much, or trying to force a burden of monetization in too many different ways, thatll always run the risk of provoking a negative reaction from customers. In short, if the future of a super-sophisticated Alexa is indeed paying for AI skills, were betting this wont be anytime soon and the results better be darn impressive. We must admit, we have trouble visualizing the latter, too, especially when as it currently stands, we cant get Alexa to understand half the internet radio stations we want to listen to, a pretty basic duty for the assistant. Okay, so Amazon did have some interesting new stuff to show off with Alexas development last week , but we remain skeptical on how thatll pan out in the real-world, and obviously more so on how this new superhuman assistant will be in the further future. In other words, well keep heaping the salt on for the time being... You might also like All the best Alexa speakers Alexa 1.5 Litre Smart Kettle review A massive collection of 80 Amazon Alexa Easter Eggs ====================================================================== Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/artificial-intelligence/amazon-says-you-mi ght-have-to-pay-for-alexas-ai-features-in-the-future --- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 (Linux/64) * Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100) .