A more intelligent Alexa? Count me in!

      Saying that people have reservations about AI may be an understatement. There are long-term worries regarding what the technology could do as it gains more power and abilities, alongside immediate concerns from those in creative fields who feel like they are unpaid trainers for AI models (and potential casualties). The criticisms are certainly valid. As someone who earns a living through writing, I'm painfully aware that AI poses a significant threat to my earnings.

      However, if my smart speakers can finally become something more beneficial than just a voice-activated timer, as Amazon claims with its new AI-powered Alexa+, I view that as a positive aspect amid the looming AI crisis, rather than something negative.

      From novelty to enchantment

      Like many of you, I wasn’t particularly impressed with Siri when Apple launched its voice assistant on the iPhone 4S. While there was some novelty to it, and I know people who still find it useful for creating reminders, replying to texts, and making calls with their voice, it felt more like a gimmick to me, especially since I don’t drive often and would rather not be overheard giving commands to my phone in public.

      When Amazon released its first Echo smart speaker, though, I was intrigued right away. The quality of Alexa’s voice, the range of questions I could ask, and the ability to control various smart home devices that I didn’t own yet (but hoped to in the future) made it seem magical in the way only innovative technology can.

      Google Assistant, via the first-generation Google Home speaker, also had its own appeal, especially for those who rely heavily on Google.

      Falling behind

      However, over the years, as I incorporated more of these devices into my home—including Sonos smart speakers that could use either Alexa or Google Assistant—I became more conscious of their limitations.

      The excitement of controlling my lights or thermostat with my voice diminished after a hundred uses, while my frustration grew as these voice assistants struggled to keep up with my need for better and more informative responses. It’s convenient to ask, “Hey Google, how old is Paul Rudd?” and receive immediate information like, “Paul Rudd is 55 years old.” But introducing even a small degree of complexity often stumps these voice assistants: “Hey Google, how old was Paul Rudd when he was in This Is 40?” “I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”

      Or worse, as Alexa illustrated: “From thecinemaholic.com, how the 26-year-old Paul Rudd pulled off a seemingly innocent and novice 18-year-old Josh is beyond my comprehension.” This refers to Rudd’s role as Josh in Clueless from 1995, by the way.

      A genuinely intelligent assistant

      In contrast, ChatGPT effortlessly generated the reply: “Paul Rudd was born on April 6, 1969, and This Is 40 was released in December 2012. That means he was 43 years old when the movie premiered, but he was likely 41 or 42 during filming, depending on the shooting schedule.”

      And as an added demonstration, if I follow up with related questions such as “Who played his wife in that movie?” or “How old was she when she played that role?” you can guess the results.

      It's worth noting that these questions are among the simplest you could ask an assistant (and dear Paul, I’m not suggesting you’re simple; you’re amazing), but they are already significantly more complex than what our current smart speakers can handle, which seems unfair. How can a voice assistant truly assist if it doesn’t truly understand?

      Is there a price to our privacy in exchange for greater AI capabilities? Possibly. More likely, yes. But anyone who owns one of these devices has already (perhaps naïvely) accepted that risk. If you fear your smart speakers are listening in on every conversation and relaying that information to Jeff Bezos, you could be correct. So why own these devices at all?

      For me—and likely for my family—the privacy risk versus reward with so-called “smart” technology is a trade I’m willing to make, with one key condition: the reward must indeed feel rewarding. If Alexa+ can recapture that sense of wonder, it will once again feel like a worthwhile trade-off.

      Not everyone at Digital Trends shares this view. Check out why senior editor John Higgins is deciding to part ways with Alexa.