Amazon has presented Alexa+, his new version of the wizard driven by generative AI models. Between advanced customization promises and agricultural capacities, the presentation allowed to read between the lines somewhat deeper: the silent failure of one of the most important strategic bets of the company. And not just Amazon.
Ten years ago, Alexa was born as a flag bearer without screens. Echo was conceived as a black cylinder without visual interfaces, a device that predicted the democratization of environmental computing. “The voice is the most natural interface,” Amazon executives repeated while strategically positioning themselves to master this new paradigm.
It was an early, almost prophetic vision: we would interact with technology simply speaking, freeing ourselves from screens and keyboards. A future that seemed as inevitable as Smartphone himself a decade before. We shared it: in this same company we launched some skills For Alexa because we understood that they were indeed the future.
And then the screens arrived. First timidly with Echo Show, as a concession to those who had not understood the vision. Then, multiplying in formats and sizes. Wednesday’s presentation was revealing: All Alexa+ demonstrations were made on devices with touch screen.
The most impressive interactions, those that justified the “plus”, depended primarily on visual elements. The great commitment to the voice interface failed to stay pure even in the house of its greatest defender.
Apple arrived somewhat late to the car of the smart speakers. He did it with a Homepod that happened with more grief than Gloria, a Homepod Mini who has been without updating and – continuously to the usual in Apple – has always attracted more for its Price than for its quality. He recovered the Homepod with a minimum update and since then he has not spoken of him again. Amazon is not alone here.
The fascinating thing is not the change of strategy – the companies constantly pivot – but Silence around this conceptual failure. No one at Amazon explained that the initial commitment to voice interfaces has been swept under the carpet. Alexa+ will work on speakers without screen, but Amazon said it with a small mouth, without showing a single demo in them. They are secondary.
Instead, we witnessed undercover rehabilitation, a silent turn where the screens went from being a complement to becoming the center of the experience. It is the tacit admission that its great initial bet – a revolution comparable to that of the iPhone for Apple – did not materialize as expected. The interface was not quick enough, precise or satisfactory for everyday needs. Neither the Airpods, nor GPT Voice, nor have echoed converting the voice into the predominant interface.
This strategic reposition is Alexa +’s unlocked story. While Amazon speaks of agricultural and customization, he is really building a bridge to a different paradigm than they initially imagined. The renewal of its application and its web interface are not mere accessories, but emergency floats in the face of the partial sinking of its original vision.
There is some irony in which Amazon, a pioneer to leave the screens, now competes for recovering ground on the same visual battlefield that I used to consider obsolete before. The screens are still unbeatable.
In WorldOfSoftware | Alexa+, first impressions: the explosion of AI feels great to the Amazon assistant. But there are also many unknowns
Outstanding image | Brandon Romonchuk in Unspash
