Amazon says that the new Alexa can answer questions like “How many books have I read this year?,” drawing on info from an Amazon customer’s account. It can notify users when, for example, new tickets for a concert drop, and help with certain tasks like booking a dinner reservation.
“The new Alexa knows almost [everything] in your life — your schedule, your smart home, your preferences, the devices you’re using, the people you’re connected [to and] the entertainment you [enjoy],” Panay said.
Like other assistants on the market, the upgraded Alexa has visual understanding. Through a device’s camera, it can ingest a video feed and respond to questions, taking whatever’s happening in the footage into account.