Amazon’s Alexa could soon start pitching you more than just the weather. According to reporting from Amazon’s July 31 second-quarter earnings call, the company is considering adding ads to Alexa Plus, its premium AI-driven assistant that’s designed to be more conversational and useful than the Alexa you know.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy reportedly said that Alexa Plus could open the door to “significant financial opportunity” by delivering ads during conversations.
A representative for Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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If the plan moves forward, it would mark a big shift for Alexa, which until now has mostly steered clear of overt advertising. For now, it’s unclear what exactly such advertising would look like, but the idea is that Alexa Plus could showcase ads for products users may be interested in buying and highlight deals.
Amazon hasn’t confirmed any details yet, but the move wouldn’t be too surprising. Alexa has struggled to make money for Amazon, and the company has been racing to give its voice assistant an AI upgrade that can compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. The thinking is that adding ads could help Amazon recoup some of those AI costs, but it might make the user experience less compelling.
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Alexa Plus was announced in February earlier this year and is available for early access for those who own a compatible Echo device. The service costs $20 per month, but is free for Amazon Prime members. While there are no set plans for advertising in Alexa, it’s worth keeping an eye on how Amazon plans to roll out these changes and whether you’ll have the option to pay to skip the ads altogether.
