Amazon has unveiled Alexa+, an advanced iteration of its voice assistant, now enhanced with generative AI to offer more natural and personalized interactions. Priced at $19.99 per month, Alexa+ is free for Amazon Prime members and is set to roll out to Echo devices starting next month. This upgrade enables Alexa+ to understand and process natural language more effectively, allowing it to perform tasks such as booking restaurant reservations, ordering groceries, and creating personalized bedtime stories. Additionally, it can analyze handwritten notes and provide detailed summaries of events from Ring cameras. Built using Amazon’s Nova large language models and integrating technology from AI startup Anthropic, Alexa+ aims to compete with other AI-driven assistants like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s offerings. Despite previous financial challenges with its devices division, Amazon is positioning Alexa+ as a central hub for managing digital tasks, with the subscription model expected to offset AI development costs and improve device profitability.