Overview
Amazon Alexa is a cloud-based virtual assistant developed by Amazon, first deployed to consumers with the first-generation Amazon Echo smart speaker on November 6, 2014. Alexa enables hands‑free interaction for queries, music and media playback, shopping, timers and alarms, and control of compatible smart‑home devices, responding after a device detects a wake word. Launch coverage documented Echo’s invitation‑only debut and core capabilities. According to contemporaneous accounts, Echo was priced at $199 ($99 for Prime members) during the early roll‑out. Time. (
time.com)
Alexa’s default wake word is “Alexa,” and devices can be configured to respond to “Amazon,” “Echo,” “Computer,” or “Ziggy.” Amazon’s customer guidance explains how to change the wake word in the Alexa app or by voice. 
Origins and development
Amazon’s work on the technology drew on acquisitions in speech and AI, including the purchase of Polish text‑to‑speech company Ivona in January 2013, whose technology underpinned Alexa’s early synthesized voice. TechCrunch. (
techcrunch.com)
Alexa’s ecosystem expanded quickly with new Echo form factors (for example, the screen‑equipped Echo Show introduced in 2017) and broader third‑party integrations. Wired. (
wired.com)
Ecosystem and devices
Alexa operates on Amazon’s Echo speakers and displays, on Fire TV, in mobile apps, and in third‑party products via the Alexa Voice Service (AVS). AVS is a cloud service that lets device makers embed Alexa; Amazon also offers an AVS Integration for AWS IoT Core to move heavy audio workloads to the cloud and reduce device hardware cost. 
Wired. (
Alexa’s third‑party “skills” (voice apps) are created with the Alexa Skills Kit (ASK), a framework and set of SDKs and APIs. ASK documentation details the cloud request–response model and certification process for skills. 
Capabilities and features
Core features include voice queries, music and podcast playback, lists and reminders, shopping, and communications features such as Drop In (two‑way intercom), device‑to‑device announcements, and calling. Amazon’s communications guidelines describe Drop In and other features.
Alexa also supports “Hunches,” a feature that can proactively act on routine patterns—for example, turning off lights if Alexa infers the home is unoccupied—subject to user control and opt‑in for automatic actions. A developer update in December 2020 and subsequent consumer explainers outline how Hunches work and their scope. Tom’s Guide. (
Safety services have evolved from the earlier Alexa Guard to Alexa Emergency Assist, a subscription service that offers access to urgent response agents, smart alerts (for certain sounds), and emergency contact notifications. Amazon announced Emergency Assist and initial U.S. pricing at $5.99/month or $59/year in 2023; subsequent explainers detail setup and compatible devices. Tom’s Guide. (
Smart home and standards
Alexa functions as a smart‑home controller and supports major connectivity protocols. Since late 2022 Amazon has rolled out support for the cross‑industry Matter standard across many Echo and eero devices, with Thread Border Router support on select models. Developer guidance lists supported Matter device categories and Thread details. MacRumors. (
Generative‑AI era
Amazon previewed a generative‑AI–enhanced Alexa in September 2023, describing a large language model optimized for voice that would enable more conversational experiences. TechCrunch;
MacRumors. (
techcrunch.com)
On February 26, 2025, Amazon announced Alexa+, a substantially updated assistant with generative‑AI features and orchestration across services. Alexa+ is priced at $19.99/month but is free for Amazon Prime members; Amazon stated U.S. early access would roll out first, prioritizing Echo Show devices. CNBC;
AP News. (
Market and adoption
Survey data indicates that Amazon‑branded smart speakers running Alexa continue to command a leading share among U.S. smart‑speaker owners. Statista’s Consumer Insights for 2024 reported that about six in ten U.S. smart‑speaker owners had an Amazon Echo, followed by Google and Apple offerings. Statista. (
statista.com)
Echo hardware has seen frequent iteration alongside discontinued experiments; reporting has chronicled devices and accessories that were later sunset, such as Echo Look, Echo Tap, and others, reflecting a decade of rapid hardware evolution. The Verge. (
theverge.com)
Privacy, security, and regulation
Incidents and research have highlighted privacy and security considerations around always‑listening devices that rely on wake‑word detection. In 2018, a family’s Echo in Portland, Oregon, inadvertently recorded a private conversation and sent it to a contact; Amazon confirmed and characterized it as an “extremely rare occurrence.” Axios. Security researchers have also reported exploitable vulnerabilities (since patched) and the feasibility of inferring commands from encrypted smart‑speaker traffic.
Wired;
arXiv. (
axios.com)
Media investigations in 2019 revealed that a small fraction of Alexa audio was reviewed by human annotators to improve the service; Amazon subsequently introduced settings to let customers opt out of human review. Bloomberg. (
bloomberg.com)
In May–July 2023, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the United States Department of Justice announced a settlement requiring Amazon to pay a $25 million civil penalty and to change retention and deletion practices for children’s Alexa data under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Agency materials describe obligations including deletion of inactive child accounts and restrictions on using certain data for training. FTC Press Release;
FTC Consumer Alert;
DOJ;
CNBC. (
ftc.gov)
In 2025, as Alexa+ rolled out, news outlets reported that Amazon discontinued a little‑used option that kept some requests from being sent to the cloud, citing the need for cloud processing to support new generative‑AI features; customers can still choose not to retain recordings after processing. AP News. Amazon’s privacy explainers emphasize on‑device wake‑word detection, microphone‑off controls, and visibility into voice history.
apnews.com)
Academic work has also documented accidental triggers and risks in third‑party skills, underscoring broader privacy considerations in voice ecosystems. arXiv;
arXiv;
Information Technology and Libraries. (
arxiv.org)
Internationalization and languages
Amazon provides localized language models and services through AVS International in regions including the U.S., UK, Canada, Germany, Austria, India, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, France, Italy, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Supported languages include varieties of English (US/UK/CA/AU/IN), German, Japanese, French (FR/CA), Italian, Spanish (ES/MX/US), Portuguese (BR), Hindi (IN), and Arabic (Saudi). Developer documentation lists language support by interface and region.
Developer platform and policy changes
Beyond ASK and AVS, Amazon periodically changes developer programs and interfaces. In 2024 the Alexa Developer Rewards program ended, and certain APIs and features (for example, List skills API access and some smart‑home interfaces) were deprecated, as reflected in Amazon’s deprecation notices. Ars Technica;
TechCrunch. (
Related services
Amazon has offered subscription services that integrate with Alexa for safety and caregiving. Alexa Together, announced in 2021 to support remote caregiving, was discontinued in May 2025, with Amazon directing customers to Alexa Emergency Assist.
