Why there is simply no need for Amazon Alexa anymore

Amazon Alexa remains synonymous with voice assistants and has undeniably reserved its place in pop culture. While it remains a popular piece of software (over 600 million Amazon Echos have been sold in total), cracks have been appearing for some time. In fact, many users are fed up with Amazon’s advertising practices and are considering finally getting rid of the old Alexa.

Besides lack of trust in Amazon’s data security service, what are the main reasons why people abandon Amazon Alexa devices? Some believe the explosion of LLMs has made Alexa obsolete, while others are annoyed by Amazon’s insistent attempts at upselling. Although the new Alexa+ has made Amazon’s product work like popular LLMs (and incorporates five new features, such as scheduling), the service costs $19.99 per month for those who don’t have an Amazon Prime subscription.

Some users are already tired of seeing Amazon’s service area shift to local, open-source options like Home Assistant or switching to Apple Home and Google Home. Certainly, those who are moving towards alternatives may not yet represent the majority (it is also very unlikely that 600 million Echos will end up in the trash overnight). Yet it’s easy to see that, for many, Alexa no longer has much appeal. Since a basic LLM arguably blows Alexa’s base model out of the water, the boring aspects of Amazon’s popular voice assistant might no longer be worth it.

It’s true that learning a new bag of tricks for Amazon Alexa could significantly improve the overall experience, but the OG Alexa is still dated by today’s standards. After the arrival of LLMs, conversing with Alexa, which works on something like video game dialog trees, became quite tedious. Users have pointed out that Alexa is limited compared to modern AI models that can accurately replicate a human conversation.

It’s no surprise that Amazon Echo devices, and by extension, the original Alexa, are gathering dust or relegated to essential tasks like starting timers. In such a landscape, certain quirks that users have learned to live with become non-negotiable. For starters, it’s simply difficult for consumers to trust Amazon with their data. The retail giant only stores recordings after activation, although the Echo is always on, making many people uncomfortable.

Most annoying, however, is Alexa’s incentive nature. The voice assistant has always been known to bother users with unsolicited suggestions. You can turn off notifications, but chances are the damage has already been done, as it’s generally accepted that hearing the phrase “by the way” coming from the speaker is one of the most annoying things in the universe.

The specific reasons why people abandon Amazon Alexa devices are certainly telling. Still, Alexa+ may have put the final nail in the popular assistant’s coffin. For some context, Google also saw the writing on the wall and phased out the old Google Assistant in favor of Gemini. Although early adopters complained about Gemini’s reliability, it is widely believed that the deployment was a success.

In contrast, the launch of Alexa+ suffered not only numerous setbacks, but also a generally lukewarm reception, to the point that many Alexa users began to revert to the older version. Users also reported that the original was severely diminished. Although this information is not confirmed by Amazon, the community has wondered whether the switcheroo could be an attempt to make the free version of the software obsolete.

Where does that leave Alexa? Alexa+ is available to Amazon Prime members at no additional cost, and the upgraded service costs $19.99 per month. Now compare that to Gemini. Not only is Gemini free on smartphones, but it’s also available on Google Nest devices for $10 per month with the standard Google Home Premium subscription. Given that ChatGPT’s voice features are also free (with more than generous time limits for home use), it’s hard to deny Amazon Alexa’s difficulty finding its place in the new LLM-dominated world. While it will likely retain a strong user base, the chances of it regaining its powerhouse status are slim.