It was announced last year that Amazon would use artificial intelligence to make Alexa more conversational when answering commands. According to reports, Amazon plans to charge a subscription fee for the new Alexa. However, the company has struggled with development and appears to be fighting among itself.
Amazon revealed plans to upgrade Alexa with improved artificial intelligence to make it more chatty. This new “Remarkable Alexa” would launch as a paid subscription called “Alexa Plus.” But reports say developing it has not been smooth.
Alexa Plus is supposed to be released on June 30th after testing with 15,000 customers. Internally, the current Alexa is called “Classic Alexa.” While the tests found the new model more conversational, it also gave wrong or incomplete answers.
To fix this, Amazon wants to completely change how Alexa’s technology works. However, this has caused conflicts with the Classic Alexa team who want to protect their work. Protecting the old system is making the new one too complicated.
Some employees even question if people will pay for an upgraded Alexa when they pay for other Amazon services. If Alexa Plus fails to make money, reports say it could threaten Alexa overall.
Amazon is running out of time to fix the issues before the planned June launch. Only achieving Remarkable Alexa’s promise of improved artificial conversations will convince customers to subscribe. If not, Amazon’s big bet on a paid version may fizzle before it starts.
