Amazon is making Alexa, its artificial intelligence, available to the Android mobile shopping application beginning this week.
Any Android device with the Amazon app aboard will have access to Alexa, allowing people to search for and buy goods simply by asking Alexa. Amazon brought this functionality to the iOS Amazon shopping app earlier this year. Amazon says Android users can search for paper towels or reorder batteries and Alexa will do those things within the confines of the Amazon app.
The app also lets people listen to music and play Kindle books, ask basic questions, add skills, access Smart Home features, and check the news, weather, and traffic via voice requests. The app works with Android users’ Amazon accounts and subscriptions to services such as Amazon Prime.
Android device owned can access Alexa by tapping a microphone built into the app. Separate Alexa-powered devices, such as the Amazon Echo, are not required.
The Amazon mobile shopping app for Android is free to download from the Google Play Store.
