1 - 1Share
It’s been about three years since Amazon launched their personal assistance devices, Echo and Alexa, with the goal of making things easier on homeowners through the means of artificial intelligence.
While the devices have seen their fair share of competition and issues – from accidentally ordering products to playing pornography after a wrong command – the personal assistance has seen a lot of success since it’s debut in 2014. Top company executives state a large part of the current year’s success can also be contributed to Alexa and it’s ecosystem, as the company’s first-quarter sales jumped 23 percent to $35.7 billion.
Amazon’s introduction of the Echo Dot at $50 was a game changer
Though the company is involved in an almost every industry know to man, the growth of their intelligence systems is at the top of their lists.
During a financial call earlier today an Amazon executive stated the company will be doubling down on its investment in the Alexa and Echo ecosystems. An investment that has seemingly already started, especially after they released the $50 Echo Dot and has opened up the Alexa software to developers.
“We’re very encouraged by the customer response to Echo products,” one exec said during the finacial call today. “Not only the products, but the ability now to use tablets as Echo devices, since we spread the Alexa technology to many of those devices. We’re also happy with the success we’ve had with developers; there are now more than 12,000 Alexa skills, so we think that’s all foundational.”
It should be interesting to see what exactly Amazon’s intentions are with growing their artificial intelligence and machine learning products, as their competition grows in the division every day. Most notably, Google announced a nearly $1 billion jump in its “other services” – including AI – earlier today, so hopefully, competition brings out the best in both products.
Andrew has been in love with video game ever since his brother was forced by their parents to let him watch him and his friends play games like Goldeneye and Super Mario 64.
1 - 1Share
2 Comments
Jack Smith
Amazon needs to add voice identification like Google Home before they do anything else, IMO.
We have both the Echo and the Google Home (GH). In the kitchen now one of my kids asks for a song to play and it plays from their Spotify account and me I get YouTube Red. It just is smart and knows.
But the biggest plus is for home automation and controlling who can do what. So my kids can not lower the AC. So when they ask no go and me and wife it does what we ask. No passcodes like the Echo which is rather ridiculous, IMO, as people just overhear.
Better is our guest can do some things in our home and not others. They have zero clue as I always hated having a passcode as it was obvious we did not trust them to do things like turn up the hot tub. Now they have no idea they can not. If they did ask when we are not around they have no idea why it does not work.
Amazon needs to add this to the Echo, ASAP.
Andrew McMahon
Very interesting to hear Jack, thanks for the input. I haven’t heard much about Google Home, but I also have Youtube Red and thus Google Music so GH sounds a lot better than Echo, especially with the automation and control you mentioned. Would you say their is anything your Echo does better than Home?