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ReleaseAmazon · Shopping AI2 min read

Amazon's Alexa shopping helper can now handle over 100 more tasks

Amazon's Alexa for Shopping now handles over 100 more tasks, including subscriptions and billing questions, as Amazon says shoppers spend more per order with it.

By the Dashline deskSource: Retail Dive
Amazon's Alexa shopping helper can now handle over 100 more tasks
Photo: Retail Dive

Amazon has added more than 100 new functions to Alexa for Shopping, its AI shopping assistant. Shoppers can now use it to manage subscriptions, resolve billing questions, and create and edit lists and registries. In plain terms, tasks that once meant digging through menus may soon be a question you ask.

What changed

Amazon launched Alexa for Shopping in May, replacing its earlier assistant, Rufus. The company says over 400 million customers used it in the past 12 months. Rajiv Mehta, Amazon's vice president of conversational shopping, called the update "just the beginning" and said Amazon wants to save customers time and make shopping more personal.

Why Amazon is pushing it

CEO Andy Jassy told analysts that US customers using Alexa for Shopping spend 50% more per order than those who do not. That compares users with non-users. It does not say the assistant caused the higher spending. Jassy also said he expects it to be the main shopping agent people use on Amazon.

Amazon is also guarding its store from outside AI agents. In September it asked Meta to remove Amazon from Meta's Muse AI agent experience. Last year it took Perplexity to court over its Comet agent making Amazon purchases for consumers.

What is not known yet

The material does not say what the new functions cost, when each one arrives, or which devices and countries get them. It also does not list all 100 additions. Anyone who tries the assistant for billing or subscriptions should check the result in their Amazon account.

The takeaway

Alexa for Shopping can now help with subscriptions and billing, so confirm any changes in your account and watch how much you spend.

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