Amazon adds Alexa to its main iOS app

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Amazon has announced that it’s integrating Alexa into its Amazon iOS shopping app. This adds the Alexa brain to the Amazon app and serves as a replacement for basic speech recognition.

Amazon iOS users will be able to shop, play music, ask questions and get news, weather and traffic. However, there was no mention of whether or when Amazon would bring Alexa to its Android app.

Given that there’s no Alexa smartphone presence, the move is smart and will familiarize more people with Alexa. That could help drive additional sales of Echo devices. Third-party skills and “smart home” control will reportedly also be available via Alexa in the Amazon app. It’s therefore effectively a third-party app store within the Amazon app.

Amazon is currently a top 15 shopping app, according to comScore. It’s the dominant e-commerce app. Beyond this, the company has sold something now approaching 10 million Echo and Echo Dot hardware devices, powered by Alexa.

To access Alexa in the Amazon iOS app, you tap the mic icon and speak. However, in doing so, I assume you don’t have to say “Alexa.”

About The Author

Greg Sterling

Greg Sterling is a Contributing Editor at Search Engine Land. He writes a personal blog, Screenwerk, about connecting the dots between digital media and real-world consumer behavior. He is also VP of Strategy and Insights for the Local Search Association. Follow him on Twitter or find him at Google+.