The only thing you can count on with artificial intelligence tools is that they will enter the market without most of the promised features. It happened with Apple Intelligence. It happened with Galaxy AI. Now, it’s happening with Alexa+, an AI update to Amazon‘s virtual assistant. The tool is officially available, but it doesn’t do much, according to The Washington Post.
The newspaper analyzed a number of internal company documents that indicate a delay in many features. According to these documents, a number of tools will be unavailable for two months or longer. Alexa+ users won’t be able to use the platform to order takeout from Grubhub or identify family members with a camera to remind them of household chores.
The same goes for the tool that, according to the company, automatically generates a story to entertain children. In addition, Alexa+ cannot be used to brainstorm gift ideas or order products. Finally, there is no browser version. The company says that these delays are due to the fact that the features do not “meet Amazon’s standards for public release.”
So, what can Alexa+ do right now? I haven’t had a chance to play around with it yet, but the early access page says that customers can use it to order an Uber, identify objects, and create emails. That’s already something, I think.
Alexa+ is included in Amazon Prime, but non-members have to pay $20 per month. It may not be available to everyone yet, as availability expands over the coming weeks and months. Also, it only works on devices with a screen. These include the Echo Show 8, 10, 15, and 21.
