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Alexa had “no profit timeline,” cost Amazon $25 billion in 4 years (arstechnica.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

The idea is that people will be willing to pay a recurring fee to use Alexa if it can do more advanced things, like perform multiple commands without the user having to say "Alexa" repeatedly, be more conversational, and manage smart homes more intuitively. Amazon is considering charging $5 to $10 per month for generative AI Alexa,

I don't know if that's worth $5-10/mo. I use Google Nest products at home, mainly to control lights. And yeah it sometimes annoying to be like, "Hey Google do this...Hey Google, do that...Hey Google, do whatever..." But at that point, I usually just use the Google Home app or a specific IoT app. And that's free.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago

If Amazon started charging for smart-home solutions, they'd essentially be making the case for FOSS solutions like home assistant.

Granted, there will always be a contingent of people who are unwilling to learn how to self-manage that tech, but there are certainly enough people who are willing that they should think twice about heading down that path.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago

I mostly go "Hey Google..." in the dark, often with my eyes closed, in bed. At this point, there is nothing I can think of that I'd like to pay it to do for me in that situation. Some searches, basic calculations, setting alarms, and music, is all I need.