The key facts

  • Amazon has added more than 100 new Alexa features related to shopping
  • Users can manage lists, subscriptions, and delivery instructions through the voice assistant
  • Over the past 12 months, more than 400 million consumers used Alexa for shopping

What's new in Alexa

Ahead of the holiday season, Amazon has expanded Alexa with more than 100 new shopping-related features, TechCrunch reports. The update lets users create shopping lists, view their contents, add and edit items, and manage subscriptions — for example, asking the assistant to change a product's delivery frequency from monthly to once every three months. In addition, delivery instructions can now be edited through Alexa: changing the address or adding details about where the package should be left.

Subscriptions and payments

Users can now ask Alexa about their Prime and Audible subscriptions, ask billing questions, and resolve payment issues. These features are aimed at handling part of customer service tasks by voice, without going through the website or app interface.

Context and statistics

The update continues the series of AI shopping features that Amazon has rolled out over the past year: earlier, the company introduced a shopping assistant in the search bar and a mechanism for notifications about new products and deals. According to Amazon figures cited by TechCrunch, since the beginning of the year the number of users of agentic features has grown eightfold, and over the past 12 months more than 400 million consumers used Alexa for shopping. The publication does not specify when the new features will reach individual users or which regions are supported.