Happy Birthday Amazon Alexa, turns 3 in India

Amazon India is marking the third anniversary of Alexa, its voice-based digital assistant, in India. Alexa was launched in India in 2018. Since then, it has become popular among Indian customers who use it on various devices. These devices include Echo smart speakers, Fire TV, and the Amazon shopping app. Also Read: Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max with Wi-Fi 6, Dolby Vision support launched in India

Amazon Alexa Anniversary Sale Offer

To celebrate this milestone, Amazon is offering 24-hour discounts on some of its best-selling Alexa devices and bundles. The Alexa anniversary sale will start on February 15 and will end on February 16. Customers can avail up to 50% off on Echo devices and up to 43% off on Fire TV devices. Additionally, up to 60% off is available on Alexa smart home combos.

Puneesh Kumar, the Country Leader for Alexa at Amazon India, spoke to Gadget 360 about the growth and future of Alexa in India. Kumar confirms that Amazon is actively developing local language support for Alexa, aiming to break down communication barriers and make the assistant truly accessible to a wider audience.

He also said that Amazon is working on making Alexa more local and relevant for Indian users by adding support for more local languages. Also Read: Hey Alexa! Find me the nearest COVID-19 vaccination centre

Alexa voice assistant support in India

Amazon Alexa, its voice-based digital assistant, in India. Alexa can understand and speak in Hindi and Hinglish, which are a combination of Hindi and English. However, India has many more languages, and Alexa needs to support them to reach more customers. Also Read: Amazon Great Indian Festival Sale offers and deals, dates to be revealed soon

Amazon plans to add support for 12 new regional languages in the future. However, Amazon has not revealed any timeline or roadmap for this project. Amazon says that developing local language support for Alexa is a complex and time-consuming task. The company is not yet ready to provide any roadmap for local language support. Amazon shares that adding these features will take a long time.

Alexa third-party devices and compatibility

Amazon Alexa is a voice-based digital assistant that can control various smart home devices with your voice. Alexa works with more than 100 third-party devices, such as smartphones, cars, earphones, and more. Also Read: Fossil Gen 6 Hybrid Smartwatch with Amazon Alexa, SpO2 tracking launched in India; Unboxing

Alexa is only compatible with six smartphone models as of now, which is a very low number compared to the wide range of devices it supports. Alexa becomes your one-stop voice control hub, empowering you to command lights, thermostats, TVs, and more, regardless of the brand or operating system. Also Read: Launch Time of Redmi TV India leaked

According to a report, Amazon plans to increase this number and make Alexa available on more smartphones and other devices. Amazon’s goal is to make Alexa ubiquitous and accessible to everyone. Also Read: Amazon India lists most popular smartphones of 2021; list includes iPhone and many more

Customer behavior on Alexa

According to a report by Amazon, the number of requests and queries to Alexa increased by 67% in 2020 compared to 2019. The report also reveals that customers expressed their love and affection to Alexa by saying “I love you” to Alexa 19,000 times per day. The customers also asked Alexa to play their favourite songs, such as Hanuman Chalisa, Shaitan Ka Saala, and Baby Shark, which were among the most requested songs in 2020.

Privacy on Alexa

Amazon has made significant improvements in its privacy policies and practices in the last 12 months, according to a report by the company. The report highlights the new features and tools that Amazon has introduced to enhance the privacy and security of its customers who use Alexa, its voice-based digital assistant.

One of these features is the Privacy Hub. It is a website that educates customers about how Alexa works and how Amazon uses and protects their data. Furthermore, it also explains how they can manage their privacy settings. Another feature is the ability to delete voice recordings from Alexa devices and Amazon servers. This is accessible either by voice commands or by using the Alexa app. Customers can also access their full voice history and review or delete their past interactions with Alexa.

Upcoming features on Amazon Alexa

Amazon is also introducing a series of new features on Alexa to make it more useful and engaging for Indian customers. Users can access these features on various Amazon devices, such as Fire TV, Echo devices, etc. Some of these features are:

• A new Macmillan skill that helps users learn English with interactive lessons and quizzes.
• A Rekhta skill that provides users with access to the world’s largest collection of Shayari in Urdu.
• Support for Audible Suno, a service that offers free audio stories and podcasts in Hindi and English.
• The option to choose Amitabh Bachchan’s voice as an alternative to the default Alexa voice. Amitabh Bachchan is a legendary Bollywood actor and popular cultural icon in India. Also Read: Can OnePlus improve its camera with the OnePlus 9 Series?