Alexa: Amazon’s Ambient, Ubiquitous OS

Alexa: Amazon’s Ambient, Ubiquitous OS

Alexa is shaping-up to be the ambient, ubiquitous Operating System that will underpin our lives. Amazon’s AI platform is powered by a fleet of smart home devices, automobiles, in-store experiences (Wholefoods, Amazon Go), ecommerce activity and physical commerce. Below are a few noteworthy items. For a more holistic perspective see our article The Three Rings of Amazon.

  • There are more than 60,000 Alexa-compatible smart home device products from over 7,400 unique brands.
  • Amazon-branded devices include smart doorbells, smart microwaves (that track our consumption) and the forthcoming mood-reading robot which we previously wrote about.
  • Amazon recently added Realogy to its Turnkey service partner roster where consumers receive a few thousand dollars worth of Amazon smart home devices upon closing the purchase of a home with a Turnkey partner (including Century 21, Coldwell banker, Sotheby’s).
  • Amazon and home builder Lennar announced a partnership last year where Lennar will embed Alexa powered devices as a standard feature in new homes.
  • Hundreds of third-party devices have embedded Alexa including select TV models from LG, ecobee’s newest smart thermostat and select headphones from Bose and Jabra.
  • Alexa is integrated into multiple vehicles from Lexus and Toyota, as well as certain BMW and MINI vehicle models (in Germany and the U.K.)
  • Amazon Go stores are powered by Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” technology. Go now has thirteen stores in Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco, and New York.
  • Amazon will reportedly accelerate its grocery push with a new supermarket chain. The company plans to open dozens of its own grocery stores in major US cities separate from Whole Foods. The stores will offer different, cheaper products than Whole Foods, including beauty and health items. We would expect for this new grocery chain to leverage Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology.
  • Amazon’s healthcare JV with Berkshire and JP Morgan – Haven – will undoubtedly leverage our PII data, transaction histories, etc. to inform diagnostics and outcomes.