Meet The Next Major Operating System: Amazon's Alexa (zdnet.com)

ZDNet's editor-in-chief warns that Amazon has ambitious plans for its new Echo Plus: Amazon is making an explicit play to be the home hub because it can automatically discover and set up lights, locks, plugs, and switches without the need for additional hubs or apps. And the Alexa 'routines' feature will be able to tie all of this together by allowing you to automate a series of actions with a single voice command: saying "Alexa, good night," and having it turn off the lights, lock the door, and turn off the TV, for example. A platform that other apps and devices can connect into? This starts to sound a lot like an operating system for the home to me.

It's not just the home, either; Amazon announced a deal to make Alexa available in BMW and Mini vehicles from the middle of next year, allowing drivers to use the digital assistant to get directions, play music or control smart home devices while travelling, without having to use a separate app. Travellers will also have access to Alexa skills from third-party developers like Starbucks, allowing them to order their coffee while driving and thus skip the line. Back in January, Amazon and Ford said they were working together to allow voice commands to turn on the engine, lock or unlock the doors as well as play music and use other skills...

It's still early days but I think Alexa has a good shot at becoming one of the standard interfaces, certainly for consumers -- an operating system for the home, if not more, if the automotive tie-ups take off too. All of this will make Amazon a serious force to be reckoned with. Windows has the desktop, and Android and iOS can fight it out for the smartphone, but right now Alexa has a lock on the smart home.

Comments

Interesting story

[Kohath]

This is quite the story. But I actually have an Amazon Echo. It turns off my lights ok, but I can’t find much else for it to do.

I’m not super interested in hearing poorly-curated music played out of a small speaker. News is occasionally semi-interesting at best.

And Alexa doesn’t do much of anything unless you use the app and go find “skills” for it. The capabilities of the skills are disappointing.

Does anyone have any stories about Alexa doing useful things? True stories only, not made up stuff about what it might do someday.

Re:Interesting story

[DontBeAMoran]

I have a story about Alexa doing something useful.

The other day I was comparing items on Amazon and I saw a link to Alexa. I clicked on it, decided that even if Amazon were to pay me to send me one for free I wouldn't want a spy in my house. So really, Alexa saved me from wasting USD$99 on a spying device.

Re:AMZN had *better* emphasize security

[Anonymous Coward]

Unless the OS security, both internal and external isn't a LOT better than what we're getting from the Internet of Crap, this will be another disaster.

Maybe that's exactly what needs to happen. Thankfully it won't affect anyone with a clue. The rest get to (re)learn a valuable lesson about blind trust and their addiction to convenience.

YeahNO!

[Chas]

I like my tech gadgets and everything.

But I'll be damned if I'm going to wire my home up to spy on me and send all the data back to Amazon, Google or WHOEVER.

I don't give a shit HOW useful it is. It's simply TOO intrusive for my liking.

And if I ever move into a place with this crap pre-installed, I'll have an electrician out first to disconnect it all.

Insurance

[bankman]

It's going to be great once insurance providers decline payments after break-ins and other mishaps that can be directly related to "smart" devices. And I am afraid that this is the only way, this kind of stupidity can be stopped. Consumers won't realise the madness they're engaging with until it hits their wallets and vendors will never understand the customer's security requirements until they are forced to pay for it, either directly or through lost sales.