If you're wondering what happened to amazon's new and improved version of its Alexa voice assistant, you're not alone. amazon-alexa-ai-is-stuck-in-the-lab-till-it-can-outsmart-chatgpt?sref=10lNAhZ9&embedded-checkout=true” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:Bloomberg;cpos:1;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “> reports that the new Alexa is still stuck in its development phase and amazon has cut off access to its beta phase, including its new “Let's Chat” phase. As a result, the launch planned for late 2024 has been delayed until next year.
The problem seems to be in their large language models (LLM). The new Alexa is designed for users, but it's also more likely that it won't be able to do some of the most basic things that the previous version could do quite easily, like setting a timer or operating smart lights, according to a tracking report from amazon-new-alexa-llm-voice-assistant-delayed-2025″ rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:The Verge;cpos:3;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “>.
amazon originally planned to introduce its new version of Alexa ai in October, but now the timeline has been extended into next year. (As you may have noticed, October has come and gone.) The original timeline planned to debut the next evolutionary step in Alexa advancement on October 17, but amazon decided to pivot and used the date to show off its new line of Kindle e-readers. Then, in August, news emerged that the new Alexa would work with a monthly subscription fee.
When ChatGPT began to gain popularity in the summer of 2023, amazon CEO Andy Jassy wanted to see if Alexa could compete if it had an ai upgrade. Jassy reportedly began peppering Alexa with sports questions “like an ESPN reporter at a playoff press conference” and her answers were “not nearly perfect.” He even composed the score for a recent game for Jassy.
Despite this, Alexa passed the good enough stage and Jassy and his fellow executives felt their engineers could build a beta version in early 2024. Unfortunately, amazon was unable to meet its deadline.
Even with the new deadline, the new Alexa still has a long way to go to solve its problems. Some employees said Bloomberg that the problem outside of Alexa's inner workings is amazon's overburdened management and lack of “a compelling vision for an ai-powered Alexa.” .
