Big tech is going big on generative AI. Almost every tech product is set to add generative AI features in some form or the other. Amazon Alexa, the popular virtual assistant, is also getting its dose of conversational AI tools that can help accelerate the company’s vision to create a great AI-powered personal assistant. “It’s now a question of just how do we implement it,” said Dave Limp, senior VP of devices and services, in a recent media briefing at the company’s headquarters in Seattle, US.

The goal is to enable Alexa to have more natural conversations with users. Generative AI can help achieve that goal even faster. During the briefing, Limp also explained why Amazon cannot simply take ChatGPT and throw it into Alexa. He explained that such large language models tend to “hallucinate” from time to time. For a virtual assistant like Alexa, that could spell trouble. Customers rely on Alexa’s capabilities to offer accurate information — be it prices, weather, or simply turning on your smart home equipment. Limp also confirmed that a lot of generative AI models in the background are already in production.

Limp revealed how consumers are now using Alexa more than ever. He said that year on year, Alexa engagement is up over 30 percent. “It has become their new normal, and it has become a new habit,” he said. Consumers are listening to music and podcasts, shopping, building lists, setting up alarms, etc. Amazon is also working on a bunch of new Alexa-powered products that are “basically in the oven and baking, and ready to come put.”

We spoke to Michele Butti, Head of Alexa International, to understand how Alexa is doing in India, when Alexa will get ChatGPT-like features, and what the company is planning for its Indian audience in the near future.

Note: Some responses have been condensed and slightly edited for clarity.

Gadgets 360: Can you talk about Alexa’s engagement in countries like India?

Michele Butti: Definitely, I’m thinking about where to start, there’s so much to say about India. I’ll probably start from Echo devices, because it’s a bit more similar to what we have learned everywhere else. We started in a similar way where we built a natural authentic experience that we built in English. That was a bit limited, and then we added Hindi, and then we made the multilingual mode available. But even that doesn’t fully reflect the complexity of how customers interact with Alexa in general.

In India, the interaction is in multiple languages, so much deeper and complex that the switch (language) happens in the same phrase, or sentence. We need to go beyond the idea of speaking once in Hindi and once in English, we also need to recognise that many customers are also interacting in a lot more languages. Today, Alexa recognises basic commands in multiple languages, in part because it learned from customers.

Cricket and Bollywood content continue to drive engagement for Alexa in India
Photo Credit: Amazon

 

Since the beginning, we tried to create content that was engaging, such as deep knowledge of cricket and Bollywood. There are slightly unique expectations in behaviour in countries like India. We made services like music available in India right out of the box, unlike other countries where you have to have a different service provider. A big amount of music consumption is the newly released titles, driven primarily by Bollywood music. This involves updating the catalogue more frequently to be ready to play something that has just been released.

We also experimented with adding Alexa to the Amazon app, adding the convenience of voice interaction and Alexa intelligence to the Amazon app. Customers were able to ask for recommendations, add products to the cart, and other features. We are encouraged by the fact that some of the fastest-growing interactions involve shopping, even though people continue to use other use cases such as creating lists, setting alarms, etc.

One of the unique features we developed for India was Pay with Alexa. The payment industry in India is way more dynamic and exciting in India than anywhere else. Amazon Pay is a very interesting initiative, and adding the convenience of voice makes it easier than the touch experience.

Alexa drives all the voice-operated features on Amazon devices including Fire TV Cube
Photo Credit: Amazon

 

Gadgets 360: What are some of the biggest challenges you face when developing for markets like India?

Michele Butti: India is a bit unique; people speak a number of different languages. The first barrier was indeed understanding and that’s why we have made changes to our model to understand some of the commands in multiple languages. You can ask to play music in around 10-12 languages in India. The other challenge is the availability of broadband Internet, this is still not unique to India though. It will require broader industry development.

Gadgets 360: Do you plan to expand support for more regional languages in India?

Michele Butti: Probably the first way to answer your question is that we always listen to customers, you know when they’re passionate about something. We have clearly learned that even customers who are perfectly fluent in English, might have more engagement when English isn’t their preferred language. To add support to a language, it doesn’t just involve plain translation. It is the culture, the appreciation of preferences, history, and what is appropriate and what is not, that’s something that can change with region and language. This is where LLMs (large language models) can be an accelerator to help reduce the effort.

Gadgets 360: That means Alexa is getting generative AI support?

Michele Butti: Yes, we are already working on it. It is already training more languages than what we have made available so far.

Gadgets 360: At what point can Alexa become so smart that it can literally train itself?

Michele Butti: I think there are probably multiple components to this question. It starts from data labeling and transcription; we have already been able to dramatically reduce the amount of transcription needed to train the models. There is already supervised learning applied. LLM applications will likely help to further speed things up. AI will allow Alexa to react to more complex questions that were previously trained. There are use cases where LLMs (large language models) can make things easier, such as asking Alexa to record a basketball game (it will involve multiple steps and decision-making).

Gadgets 360: What’s the next big thing for Alexa?

Michele Butti: I don’t think there’s a single silver bullet. I’m personally very excited about making Alexa available in multiple smart properties. We mentioned hospitality, but it could be healthcare facilities or senior citizen facilities. We have launched some of those, that’s one other area where we’re making Alexa available. We have also launched Alexa in real estate, and smart properties. That way real estate developers can integrate Alexa in smart homes right from the beginning. Alexa is a big simplifier for companies that manage such large properties.

 

Disclosure: Amazon sponsored the correspondent’s flights and accommodation for the event in Seattle, US. 

The Echo series of smart speakers from Amazon is arguably the best among the competition right now, and the varied sizes and prices also provide something for every budget. New Echo devices usually bring incremental changes over multiple generations, as is the case with the Echo smart speaker that I’m reviewing here. The Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is the latest iteration of the company’s compact and affordable smart speaker, meant for personal desktop or bed-side use.

Priced at Rs. 5,499 in India, the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) looks just like the 4th-generation device, but comes with some useful additions under the hood which should add to its utility and capabilities. Of course, it’s also powered by Alexa, Amazon’s reliable and feature-filled smart voice assistant, and can slot into your existing smart home setup with ease. Is this the best affordable smart speaker you can buy right now? Find out in this review.

The Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) looks and feels almost the same as its predecessor, but is now available in a blue colour option

 

Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) design and specifications

Although the Echo Dot range has evolved and changed a lot over the generations, the aesthetic and visual differences between the Echo Dot (5th Gen) and Echo Dot (4th Gen) are barely noticeable. The newer smart speaker is the same size and dimensions, sticking to the rather neat-looking spherical shape of its predecessor. The 5th-gen speaker does weigh a bit more, but this won’t matter too much since it’s not meant to be portable.

The Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is available in three colours — white and black like before — and a new blue colour option, which in my opinion is the best looking of the lot. The sales package includes a 15W power adapter with a fixed cable to power the smart speaker. Unlike the Echo Input Portable, the Echo Dot doesn’t have a battery and will need to be plugged in at all times to work.

The top of the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) has four physical buttons — two to adjust the volume, an action button for various functions, and a microphone mute button. Interestingly, there is also an accelerometer in the device which allows for detection of taps at the top; this can be used to snooze alarms, stop timers, and even play or pause music. That said, it usually needed a fairly firm whack at the top of the speaker for this to work, and sometimes didn’t even respond immediately, so you might be better off using voice controls instead.

At the bottom of the speaker is the signature Echo light ring which illuminates in different colours when the speaker is listening for commands, muted or disconnected from the Internet. The underside has a grippy, rubber texture to keep the Echo Dot stable when placed on most surfaces. The back has the socket for power; notably, the 3.5mm audio-out socket (which was present on the previous-generation Echo Dot) isn’t there on the 5th-gen device.

The Echo Dot (5th Gen) does away with the 3.5mm audio-out socket

 

For connectivity, the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) works with both 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi connections. Connectivity was stable and reliable even with the speaker placed far away from my router and connected to a relatively slow 2.4GHz connection. The Echo Dot works with the Alexa app (iOS and Android) for setup, customisation, and other features. However, once set up, you might not need the app too often, since most functionality works on its own on the smart speaker.

Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) features and performance

The Echo Dot range from Amazon has largely been about getting the basics right, offering the full-fledged Alexa experience including calling, personalised responses, and IoT capabilities, along with acceptable sound quality at a convenient size and reasonable price. The 5th-generation Echo Dot steps things up a bit with the addition of motion-detection and temperature sensors, which can be put to use with Alexa Routines for better IoT capabilities.

Of particular note is the temperature sensor — a rather useful addition on an otherwise basic smart speaker — which gives it considerably more advanced smart home capabilities. You can view the indoor temperature of the room in the Alexa app or ask for it specifically through a voice command, but the true utility of it comes into play with Alexa Routines. For example, you can set up a smart fan or AC to turn on when the temperature goes above a certain threshold, if you have compatible devices that work with Alexa.

Another useful addition is motion detection, which can similarly be used with Alexa routines to activate smart home devices such as bulbs or fans when motion is detected in the room that the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is in. All of this makes the new Echo Dot a far more useful smart home controller than the previous device.

The Alexa app on iOS and Android lets you control and configure certain functions on the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen)

 

Alexa on the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is as good as it has always been, and the microphone on the speaker is good enough to pick up the wake word and voice commands reliably in a small or medium-sized room. That said, performance in this regard is best if you’re around three or four feet away at most.

The device has a slightly larger 1.73-inch speaker driver, despite being the same size as its predecessor. While it can get fairly loud for a speaker of its size, the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is best used as a desktop or bedside speaker. I found that keeping the volume low while I was around two feet away was the ideal way to use the device.

Listening to I Could Be The One by Avicii while working, The Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is discreet and simple in its looks, but very capable in the way it sounds. Nicely tuned for music across genres, the device sounded good across the frequency range, but definitely favoured the bass a bit. The shape and size of the speaker makes it ideal for personal listening, but it’s loud enough to be heard in different rooms, even at around the 50 percent volume mark.

I wouldn’t use the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) as my primary home speaker as it just doesn’t sound that good, but it’s impressive as a secondary desktop or bedside audio device, particularly if you’re already used to the Alexa voice assistant and its features. Alexa also supports numerous music streaming services, along with support and understanding of complex instructions that make it work well with just about any service.

Verdict

The Amazon Echo Dot has typically been an entry-level smart speaker meant for small rooms and personal listening, and the 5th-generation device is no different in this regard. Where it does see improvements is in the hardware, and the addition of a couple of sensors which increase its utility as a smart home controller. That said, any improvement is worth it as long as it doesn’t bump up the price too much.

At Rs. 5,499, the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) is a worthwhile purchase if you intend to put the new improvements to use in a smart home environment. Alexa itself continues to improve, so the Echo Dot (5th Gen) will only get better over time. If the IoT functions don’t appeal to you too much, you might just find it more sensible to get the Echo Dot (4th Gen) instead; it’s a fair bit more affordable, and almost identical when it comes to the core specifications and capabilities.

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Amazon Prime Day 2022 sale in India is set to begin on July 23, but the e-commerce company has already begun listing its devices at a discounted rate, ahead of the upcoming sale. Starting from July 20, customers can purchase Amazon Echo and Fire TV devices at a discount of up to 55 percent, while the company’s Kindle readers will see a price cut of up to Rs. 4,000. Prime members can also take advantage of deals on smart home combo offers with Amazon’s smart speakers, paired with smart bulbs.

Ahead of the upcoming two-day Amazon Prime Day 2022 sale event, here are some of the discounts and bundled offers available as part of the early deals on the e-commerce website.

Amazon Prime Day 2022: Best early deals on Amazon devices

Echo Dot (4th Generation)

Released in 2020, the fourth generation Echo Dot will be priced at Rs. 2,249, down from the listed price of Rs. 4,499. The smart speaker supports voice commands in English and Hindi and lets users stream audio from services like Amazon Prime Music, Spotify, JioSaavn, Gaana, and Apple Music. The Echo Dot also allows users to control their smart home devices with their voice and schedule them to turn on at a specific time every day.

Buy now: Rs. 2,249 (MRP Rs. 4,499)

Echo Show 5 (2nd Generation)

Like the fourth generation Echo Dot, the Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Generation) allows users to stream music from their favourite services. It is also equipped with a 5.5-inch display that can be used to stream movies and TV shows from Amazon Prime Video and Netflix. The inbuilt 2-megapixel camera can also be used to remotely monitor your home via the Alexa app, or as an “intercom” feature for friends and family who also use the Echo Show smart display, and according to the company.

Buy now: Rs. 3,999 (MRP Rs. 8,999)

Fire TV Stick Lite

For customers who don’t want to buy a new smart TV to replace their existing television, Amazon’s Fire TV Stick Lite is one of the most affordable ways to add internet connectivity and support for streaming services. The device offers full-HD streaming and comes with the Amazon Voice Remote Lite. Users can gain access to streaming services including Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+ Hotstar, ALT Balaji, Discovery+, ZEE5, SonyLIV, and Sun NXT. They can also access free services like YouTube, YouTube Kids, MXPlayer, TVFPlay, and YuppTV.

Buy now: Rs. 1,799 (MRP Rs. 3,999)

Kindle (10th Generation)

Equipped with a 6-inch glare-free display that is designed to look like paper, the Kindle (10th generation) features adjustable lighting that lets users read in different types of lighting. Amazon Prime members can access several books and comics, according to the company. The reader also allows users to highlight passages, look up specific words, and translate text without exiting the content they are reading. It is equipped with 8GB of storage, offers Wi-Fi connectivity, and comes with free cloud storage for Amazon content.

Buy now: Rs. 6,499 (MRP Rs. 7,999)

In addition to the deals on specific Amazon devices, the company will also offer combo offers with its smart speakers, along with smart bulbs. Customers can pick up the Echo Dot with a Syska 12W smart bulb, which will be priced at Rs. 2,349, down from the retail price of Rs. 6,698. Similarly, another combo offer features the Echo Show 5 paired with a Mi LED smart bulb, that will cost Rs. 4,049, instead of the combined retail price of Rs. 9,998. Meanwhile, you can also check our handy guide on how to find the best deals during the upcoming Amazon Prime Day 2022 that begins on July 23.

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A good smart speaker plays an important role in today’s connected homes, giving access to music and other audio content, information, tools and utilities that are useful around the home. You also gain the ability to voice-control any smart appliances and IoT products you may have, such as air purifiers, robot vacuum cleaners, and smart bulbs. Naturally, the more a smart speaker can do, the better it is. However, with audio content usually being the primary use case of a smart speaker, you also want to make sure you’ve got a device that sounds good.

The reliance on a good voice assistant system means that smart speakers are still largely limited to just a handful of brands. However, with Google and Amazon opening up access to their respective voice assistants to other brands, many more options are available today across price segments. Before we get to our recommendations, let’s first cover the basics of smart speakers, particular what it is that makes a speaker ‘smart’.

What is a smart speaker?

Defining a speaker isn’t really necessary, but it’s important to elaborate on what a ‘smart’ speaker is, and how it’s different from the typical wired or wireless speaker or speaker system. Apart from the ability to output audio loud enough to be heard in a small area such as a living room, a smart speaker is always connected to the Internet (usually through a Wi-Fi connection), and relies on this to access audio content, weather information, and more.

It can also use this Internet access for a variety of other functions, including providing basic information, controlling smart appliances in the home such as light bulbs, air purifiers, and cleaning robots, to even household tools and utilities such as alarms, timers, and reminders. Many smart speakers also have Bluetooth connectivity, so they can be used as traditional Bluetooth speakers.

Most smart speakers need to be connected to a wall power socket to work, due to the lack of a built-in battery. There are some smart speakers that have a built-in battery and are able to work wirelessly, but this isn’t too common in the segment.

Should you buy a smart speaker?

A very important requirement for a smart speaker is reliable internet connectivity, since most smart speakers can’t do much without a good Wi-Fi connection. You’ll also need access to audio streaming services; while there are free options, the best results come when you use a premium streaming service such as Spotify or YouTube Music with a smart speaker. Of course, you also need the right accounts set up to use your smart speaker to the best possible extent. In the absence of these, you’re probably better off using a traditional Bluetooth speaker instead.

If you have smart appliances or other IoT devices in your home, a smart speaker will help you control these using just voice commands to the default voice assistant. Even being able to play particular music tracks, playlists or genres with only your voice is a very useful feature that will make your listening sessions a lot more seamless. Finally, streaming music and other audio content over Wi-Fi allows for higher bandwidth compared to Bluetooth, so you’ll get better sound quality while still enjoying the benefits of wireless streaming and connectivity.

The best smart speaker: Google Nest Audio

It’s not often that you come across a product with no significant drawbacks, and the Google Nest Audio is one such smart speaker. Although similar to the Google Home smart speaker range, the Rs. 7,999 Google Nest Audio is a huge step-up in terms of looks, sound quality, and the ability to pick up voice commands even from across a room. You simply won’t find a better smart speaker for under Rs. 10,000 today.

Available in two colours – Chalk (white) and Charcoal (black) – the Google Nest Audio stands upright on a tabletop, and looks great with its fabric-wrapped exterior. There’s just one physical switch at the back to mute the microphone, while the top of the speaker has a touch sensitive area to control playback, volume, and basic functions. All of this makes for an efficient design that encourages you to rely on your voice to control the speaker, and voice commands do work very well on the Google Nest Audio.

Apart from the fact that the microphones are able to pick up sounds from across a room, Google Assistant is also constantly improving and works very well on the Google Nest Audio. It’s easy to set up Google Assistant to control smart appliances, and basic commands and queries usually register perfectly with just one attempt. Apart from linking a streaming service and requesting audio tracks, playlists, artistes, and genres, there’s also Bluetooth connectivity and Chromecast Audio support, giving you plenty of options for how to stream music on the device.

Sound quality is a big factor that makes the Google Nest Audio one of our favourite picks among smart speakers. The sound is loud, detailed, and refined, matching the kind of sound quality you could expect from a wired speaker system around the same price. Of course, the sound quality is best when using Wi-Fi to stream, but it sounds decent enough over Bluetooth as well. All of this makes the Google Nest Audio our top pick among smart speakers.

Runner-up – for premium sound quality: Amazon Echo Studio

Although there are many devices in the Echo smart speaker range, none quite matches up to the Amazon Echo Studio. Priced at Rs. 22,999, The Amazon Echo Studio is among the best, biggest, and most expensive smart speakers you can buy in India right now.

With an impressive five-driver setup that includes three mid-range drivers, one tweeter, and one subwoofer, the Amazon Echo Studio offers loud, clean, and engaging sound, significantly better compared to everything else in the segment. Combine this with the benefits of Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant, and you have a smart speaker that does practically everything you want, and sounds great while doing it. You can even link the Amazon Echo Studio to a Fire TV device wirelessly, letting you use it as a sound system for your television, although we did face occasional lag in the sound with this setup.

Perhaps the only real drawback is the price; you can buy a pretty decent soundbar or speaker system for the same price, and despite all of its good qualities, the Echo Studio is just a single speaker after all. However, it’s the absolute loudest and best-sounding single-box smart solution you can buy right now, and deserves a place in our top picks for this reason.

 

Runner-up – for Apple fans: Apple HomePod mini

Apple isn’t as strong in the smart speaker segment as Google and Amazon, but the HomePod range did receive a big update recently. Priced at Rs. 9,900, the Apple HomePod mini is smaller and much more affordable than the HomePod, making it much more accessible and easy to use. It’s also ideal for users who are heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, since you’ll need an iOS device and an Apple Music subscription to make the most of the smart speaker.

The smart speaker uses Apple’s Siri voice assistant, and just like other similar assistants , this can be invoked hands-free using the ‘Hey Siri’ command. To play specific tracks, you’ll need a paid subscription to Apple Music, since the smart speaker does not support any other streaming services such as Spotify or YouTube Music. Apple has notably stated that its Lossless Audio tier will be supported on the HomePod mini with a future firmware update.

You can also use two HomePod mini speakers as a stereo pair. We did face some issues with connectivity when using stereo pairing, and smart capabilities are basic at best because of the limited support for IoT appliances and devices. However, sound quality is excellent for the size and form factor, and the HomePod mini works very well within the Apple ecosystem, making this a good pick if you already have Apple devices at home.

The best completely wireless smart speaker – Sony SRS-XB402M

Most smart speakers don’t have batteries built-in, and need to be plugged into a wall socket to work. However, there are a few options that can be used as smart speakers with full functionality, completely off the wire. The best of these options, in our opinion, is the Sony SRS-XB402M, which is priced at Rs. 19,990.

This is an impressive smart speaker for a number of reasons, including access to Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant directly through Wi-Fi connectivity, the ability to use Spotify’s Connect feature to stream over Wi-Fi, IP67 dust and water resistance, and good sound quality. The built-in battery means that you don’t need to keep the Sony SRS-XB402M plugged in all the time, making this a good option for outdoor use.

There is, of course, traditional Bluetooth connectivity apart from the Wi-Fi-based functions. However, the high price of the Sony SRS-XB402M, and the fact that Alexa’s communication features don’t work on non-Amazon devices do hold this completely wireless smart speaker back a bit.

 

The best affordable smart speaker – Mi Smart Speaker

Smart speakers come in all sizes and shapes, but most options priced at under Rs. 5,000 are small and only really capable enough for desktop or bedside use. The Mi Smart Speaker is an exception to that trend, offering loud, capable sound that rivals the Google Nest Audio, but is priced competitively at Rs. 3,999. It’s a full-fledged smart speaker with access to Google Assistant, and 12W of rated sound output.

While the sound occasionally lacked refinement and the design is a bit dull as compared to the better looking fabric-wrapped options from Google and Amazon, the Mi Smart Speaker is a value-for-money option with loud, enjoyable sound, and useful smart functionality. It’s the one to go for if your budget is tight.

Also consider

Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen): The Echo Show range is better classified as a smart screen, but naturally has a decent sound system built in for smart functionality using Alexa. It’s expensive, but is the most impressive smart device you can buy right now.

Amazon Fire TV Cube (2nd Gen): This isn’t exactly a smart speaker; it’s a streaming device with some smart speaker capabilities including hands-free access to Alexa. However, it serves the purpose quite well once connected to a TV or home entertainment setup, and does practically everything you want including TV controls for Rs. 12,999.

Google Nest Hub: The Rs. 6,999 Google Nest Hub is a smart display with Google Assistant capabilities. Although sound quality isn’t great, the visual cues for Google Assistant might make it worth considering.

Google Nest Mini: Among the smallest smart speakers you can buy right now, the Rs. 3,999 Google Nest Mini is the right size for desktop or bedside use. However, sound quality is quite ordinary, even for the price and form factor.

Apple HomePod: Apple’s larger smart speaker is bigger than the HomePod mini, and appropriately louder as well. However, at Rs. 19,900, the HomePod is expensive for a speaker that is inextricably tied to the Apple ecosystem. Keep in mind that it’s been officially discontinued, so finding one will be a bit difficult.

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Is HomePod mini the best smart speaker under Rs. 10,000? We discussed this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Amazon Alexa has been in India for over four years now. The voice assistant, which initially debuted on Amazon Echo speakers, is currently available across a range of third-party devices including smart TVs, smartphones, and wearables such as smartwatches, as well as truly wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds and headphones. And of course, there are Amazon’s own Echo devices. Although Alexa kicked off its journey in India only in English, it has gradually started understanding Hindi and Hinglish — a blend of Hindi and English — that is popular across the country.

On this week’s episode of Gadgets 360 podcast Orbital, host Akhil Arora speaks with Dilip RS, the Country Manager for Alexa Skills and Voice Services at Amazon India, to understand the journey of Alexa in the country. The conversation is joined by Gadgets 360 audio expert Ali Pardiwala, who has reviewed a number of Alexa-integrated devices.

Amazon formally introduced Alexa to India through the first family of Echo speakers back in October 2017. The Echo range was initially invite-only, and made available to all customers in February 2018. However, shortly after the initial Echo series, the voice assistant expanded in the country through third-party devices including speakers from Logitech and Harman Kardon and a Moto Mod for Motorola phones.

Before the formal debut of Alexa in India, scores of early adopters in the country — including our host — were testing out the experience by getting Echo speakers from outside the country. But the official launch helped Amazon to get a vast range of datasets to polish localisation. Dilip tells us that Alexa now understands both Hindi and English words, as well as a multilingual mode in which you can interact with the voice assistant in both languages simultaneously.

“People who speak to Alexa in Hindi, they actually have a 50 percent higher range of questions,” he notes.

In 2018, Amazon introduced a skill called Cleo that helped Alexa learn Hindi and other Indian languages directly from users. The engineering team at Amazon later built a bilingual Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) system that enabled Alexa to understand Hindi and English words at the same time. The system also includes slots to incorporate content from multiple Indian languages in Telugu, Tamil, and Marathi, Dilip tells us in the conversation.

“Alexa has to truly understand what the customer is intending in which language and even respond back in that,” he adds.

Dilip also reveals that over the last four years, Echo devices have expanded their reach to almost 85 percent of pin codes in the country. These are no longer limited to some metros, but available in cities such as Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh and Bundi, Rajasthan.

In addition to its regular consumers, Amazon is seeing government school teachers in India using Alexa-powered Echo or third-party devices in their classrooms to have their students interact more freely and improve their diction. Dilip says: “The kids are asking questions that they’re not comfortable asking their teachers. Their attendance rates went up in school.”

We also talk about the privacy side of things and how Alexa works even in areas where Internet connectivity is not at par with metro cities. You can listen to all this and more by hitting the play button on the Spotify player embedded above.

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