Alexa+ is rolling out across Australia, and she’s a fair dinkum digital legend. Just ask her. The lengths Amazon has gone to making its AI assistant sound Australian are extraordinary. It’s got all the slang, all the rivalries, and all the sports teams down pat. Alexa+ not only sounds the part, it actually delivers when it comes to being useful.
But to get the most out of it, you have to let it get to know you. It will also need access to your calendar and emails to really get maximum benefit. I’ve done that, and it’s already paying off. The Alexa team told us at yesterday’s launch that Australians interact with Alexa more than two billion times each year. 34 million checks are about the weather forecast, and managed smart home devices more than 600 million times in the last 12 months.
The demos were impressive, but it wasn’t until I tried Alexa+ at home today that it really won me over. The conversational aspect is spectacular. You can see in the video above how I interjected, and ‘she’ responded. The Alexa team calls Alexa ‘she’ by the way.
“Alexa+ represents our biggest leap forward in personal AI – shifting from a more transactional “ask and do” experience to a sidekick that you can chat to naturally, remembers your preferences, can turn up the heating if it senses a temperature drop, and is genuinely more capable of getting things done,” wrote Kate Gooden, Alexa Country Manager, Australia.
“Restaurant bookings. Shopping. Home security. Music discovery. Schedule management. Shift your mental load to Alexa+ so you can spend more time doing the things you love.”
Next Level Intelligence
Chatbots are useful, but they don’t engage the way Alexa+ does. She can make a booking at your favourite restaurant, alert you about calendar clashes, save recipes, remember your favourite team, recommend and buy gifts for family, or turn the air con on proactively when a rise in temperature is detected.
Alexa+ is built on large language models (LLMs) through Amazon Bedrock. This isn’t just Alexa with generative AI – it’s an all-new architecture which connects hundreds of services and devices to deliver a smarter Alexa experience that personalises to your individual and household needs.
Aussie Alexa+
Alexa has been building up her Australian vocabulary for several years now. Alexa+ knows when you name teams from the wrong code or the shame of showing up empty-handed at a BBQ, that you always wave to thank a driver who lets you in, and that you must take turns in a shout. It has local cultural understanding.
The local Alexa team of engineers, linguists, and speech scientists have infused Alexa+ with “Australian personality”. They’ve done this by reinforcement learning, accent-neutral speech representations, and regional embeddings.
Getting Things Done
If you’re low on household products, Alexa can check your preferred brand’s availability and price before ordering. She tracks your Amazon orders and even alerts you to price drops. For blenders, Alexa compares features and summarises customer reviews to help you choose the best one.
With thousands of smart home devices connected to Alexa across Australia, controlling lights, cameras and air conditioning is easier than ever. Simply say “It’s dark” and Alexa will turn the lights on. You can also create custom routines by voice, combining actions like adjusting lights, playing music and sharing the weather forecast. No need to open the Alexa app.
Alexa moves with you throughout the house. For example, if you’re cooking in the kitchen and say “Alexa, play my favourite artist,” she’ll start it on your nearby Echo Show. Just say “Alexa, move the music here” in the living room and she’ll do it seamlessly.
You can also check if a delivery arrived with your Ring doorbell camera by saying “Alexa, did any packages get delivered today?” She’ll connect to your Ring camera, analyse the footage and show you if anyone left a parcel.
Security
There’s nothing more important than security. Most queries are handled in the cloud, so that means AWS. Pretty secure.
For the user, the Alexa Privacy dashboard lets you review and manage your interactions with Alexa+ in one place. You can listen to exactly what Alexa heard, review the attachments you’ve shared, change how long your voice recordings are stored, and more.
Alexa-enabled devices have multiple layers of protections. Camera controls and a visual indicator that lets you know when Alexa is listening to your request. There’s more info at the Alexa Privacy Hub.
Pricing and Availability
- Australian users can try Alexa+ starting today through early access. You can register your interest at Amazon.com.au/newalexa.
- If you want instant access, you can buy an eligible Echo device and immediately be eligible to opt in.
- During Early Access, Alexa+ is free for eligible Amazon customers.
- After Early Access, it will be free for all Prime members, joining benefits like free and fast shipping, exclusive shopping events, Prime Video, and Amazon Music. Non-Prime members will be able to get Alexa+ for A$29.99/month.
- More than 98% of Alexa customers in Australia have a compatible device with Alexa+. However, the Echo Show 8, Echo Show 11, Echo Dot Max, and Echo Studio are purpose-built for Alexa+, delivering more processing power, memory, and edge-based computing with next-generation sensors.
Conclusion
Alexa+ is a massive step up from the old digital assistant. If you are a Prime member, then it’s a no-brainer to upgrade to Alexa+ but at almost A$30 a month without it, it’s a tougher choice.
I’m really impressed with what the Alexa team has done. It really does feel like a local AI that has your back.
