Overview
- Amazon has added a text-message interface to Alexa for Shopping that accepts natural-language descriptions and photos to search listings, recommend products, and place orders on users’ behalf.
- The feature builds on Alexa’s recent shopping upgrades and can manage lists, track prices, compare items, and check order status while learning user preferences over time.
- Access is rolling out first to a small group of invited U.S. customers with plans to expand to millions in the coming weeks and a waitlist available for others.
- The launch positions Amazon alongside other companies offering text-based AI agents, following recent moves by OpenAI and DoorDash and coming after Amazon blocked Meta’s Muse from querying its site.
- For users this means faster, hands-free shopping by text or photo, and for retailers and competitors it could reshape how people search and buy during the key holiday selling period.