Amazon May Charge $5 to $10 Monthly for AI Upgraded Alexa

Amazon is planning a major revamp of its Alexa service that will include new conversational generative AI capabilities for a monthly fee, reports Reuters.

Internally referred to as 'Banyan,' the project is the first significant overhaul of the service since its launch in 2014. The new voice assistant is being dubbed 'Remarkable Alexa.'

Amazon has pushed workers towards a deadline of August to prepare the newest version of Alexa, three of the people said, noting that CEO Andy Jassy has taken a personal interest in seeing Alexa reinvigorated. In an April letter to shareholders, Jassy promised a "more intelligent and capable Alexa," without providing additional details.


"We have already integrated generative AI into different components of Alexa, and are working hard on implementation at scale—in the over half a billion ambient, Alexa-enabled devices already in homes around the world—to enable even more proactive, personal, and trusted assistance for our customers," said an Amazon spokeswoman in a statement.

Amazon is purportedly working to replace 'Classic Alexa' with a AI-powered one, but it also plans to offer more powerful AI software for complicated queries and prompts. Sources say the more powerful version of Alexa will cost $5 to $10 per month and this fee will be separate from the company's Prime membership fee.

The more advanced version of Alexa would be able to perform complex tasks like composing a brief email, sending it, and ordering dinner for delivery from a single prompt. It would also eliminate the need to say Alexa repeatedly during an interaction.

Additionally, 'Remarkable Alexa' could learn from users habits to control smart home products. For example, it could turn on a coffee machine after a morning alarm goes off, or turn on the TV when its time for your favorite show.


To get an idea of what the new Alexa could sound like, check out this preview released last September. Please download the iClarified app or follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and RSS to be notified when 'Remarkable Alexa' is available.