Alexa is having heyday at the CES 2017.
With press conferences and minor exhibits dominating the first day of the tradeshow, Amazon's digital assistant is already the talk of the town. This early, the trend seems to be that of the rise of artificial intelligence particularly in the automotive and smart home industry.
Alexa was introduced via Amazon's smart speakers, the Echo and Echo Dot. Since then the digital assistant has been integrated in different devices and appliances.
At the ongoing CES 2017, Alexa has been mentioned with relations to a diverse group of products including laundry machines, smartphones, refrigerators, smoke detectors, cars, and a host of others.
First Alert has revealed a smart smoke and carbon monoxide detector that has Alexa capability while Dish Network's Hopper DVR is also Alexa-enabled. Whirlpool has a washing machine that users can control with the help of the AI. GE Lighting just introduced an LED lamp which can be used to play music, order food, and light up a room.
LG also unveiled a connected refrigerator that is powered by Alexa. The smart fridge has a 29-inch touchscreen where the users can perform tasks like see what's inside, play music, and write notes. With, Alexa, they can also do the same things by using voice commands. This is especially beneficial when the user needs to prepare a meal since Alexa knows at least 60,000 different recipes.
Ford has also teamed up with Amazon to provide their patrons with the ability to access vehicles through Alexa becoming the first in the industry to have in-car Alexa capability. Ford's SYNC 3 AppLink technology will allow a variety of tasks that could be accessed through voice commands such as playing music and audiobooks, navigation, and making shopping or to-do lists. Asking Alexa to turn on the lights or shut the garage door may also be possible. Users can also ask the AI to start the car's engine or to lock or unlock its doors even if he or she is inside the house.
One reason seen by experts as to why Alexa is currently lording it over the AI field is its experience. Alexa, along with the Echo, came before the likes of Google Assistant and Google Home. Plus, it is not limited to a certain platform like Siri is with Apple.
According to Forbes, an estimated 5.1 million Echo has already been sold since 2014 but this hasn't stopped Amazon from sharing the technology with various partners. It may have experienced a few hiccups here and there like the recent porn-filled tirade and its "involvement" in a murder, but because of Amazon's unselfishness and continuous effort to improve its AI, Alexa is primed to take over the smart home and maybe even the whole connected industry.
