Amazon.com Inc. AMZN 1.53% is bringing its Alexa virtual assistant to products ranging from earbuds to finger rings, as the e-commerce giant looks to expand the reach of its technology into users’ everyday lives.
The company unveiled at a press event Wednesday more than a dozen new devices, such as a high-end speaker, a multifunction oven that can double as a microwave and air fryer, and motion sensor, with the virtual assistant built into them.
In the backdrop of Amazon’s Spheres building, Amazon devices executive Dave Limp showed off the company’s new earbuds. Named Echo Buds and costing $129, the Amazon product is undercutting rivals such as Apple Inc., which has controlled the market with its AirPods, which cost $159. Apple’s AirPods have 53% of the global earbud market share, according to Counterpoint Research. Apple is expected to sell 40 million AirPods in its current fiscal year, according to UBS. Amazon said Echo Buds users will have to have their phone on them to use Alexa.
Amazon also introduced Echo Frames, eyeglasses that the company said will feature microphones and speakers to communicate with Alexa. In addition, Amazon is also launching an Alexa-enabled ring named Echo Loop. Both products are only available through invite-only.
“Amazon’s failure has been around mobile, and this is a chance for them to fix it,” analyst Gene Munster from Loup Ventures said. He said Amazon’s price for its earbuds, although lower than Apple’s, proves that voice-controlled earphones are difficult to make.
Amazon has sought to put Alexa further into people’s lives since it introduced the home-focused Echo device in 2014. Loup Ventures in June estimated Amazon would sell 42 million Echo devices this year, commanding 58% of the smart-speaker market. Amazon doesn’t break out revenue it generates from device sales in earnings reports.
Last year, the company began offering an Alexa-enabled computer chip that could be inserted into microwaves, coffee machines and other products. Amazon has also signed up Toyota, Lexus and other car makers to feature Alexa in their new vehicles. Alexa is featured in products such as iHome mirrors and monitoring systems made by security company SimpliSafe.
Many of the products were on display Wednesday, with a line of Alexa-enabled vehicles parked outside of Amazon’s headquarters and a mock home inside displaying Amazon’s newest offerings.
While Amazon has been the leader in home virtual assistants, it is quickly losing ground. Loup Ventures predicted that sales of Google’s Nest device will surpass Amazon’s Echo by 2021.
Amazon wants customers to be able to experience Alexa whether they are inside or outside the home, instead of having to turn to competitors’ offerings like Google or Apple’s Siri, said Miriam Daniel, vice president of Alexa and Echo devices.
“We envision a world where Alexa will be ambient,” she said. “We believe in not having broken experiences.”
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