Amazon is bringing Alexa for Shopping into text conversations, letting users find products, compare options and place orders from their messaging app. Access is initially limited to a small, invited group in the US, with Amazon planning to expand availability to millions more users in the coming weeks.
How Alexa Shopping Works Through Text
To get started, eligible users link their phone number. After signup, Alexa Shopping appears in their phone’s contacts, giving them a contact they can message with shopping requests.
The conversation stays inside the messaging app. Users can ask for product ideas, review suggestions, add items to their cart and have Alexa place an order on their behalf without opening Amazon’s website or shopping app.
Requests can be conversational. Amazon gives the example of telling Alexa that you’re nearly out of cat litter: the assistant can check your preferences and order accordingly. Users can also set up a weekly grocery order.
Find Products With Messages or Pictures
Amazon says Alexa can help with routine grocery purchases as well as finding products from a picture. That gives users more than one way to begin a shopping conversation: describe what they need or provide an image of the item they’re looking for.
Alexa also sends product suggestions and comparable options. Users can move from exploring ideas to comparing items and making a purchase within the same conversation.
Recommendations That Reflect Your Preferences
According to Amazon, Alexa learns more about a user’s tastes and preferences as they shop through messages. Those preferences then inform its recommendations and the alternatives it suggests.
Users can also tell Alexa about their requirements directly. For example, someone who follows a keto diet can share that preference with the assistant. Amazon says Alexa will account for it when selecting items for a later grocery request.
The personalization extends beyond suggesting products: in Amazon’s cat litter example, Alexa checks the shopper’s preferences before placing the order.
Order Changes, Approval and Delivery Tracking
Alexa can keep track of existing orders and make changes to them. If a user wants to add another item after placing an order, the assistant can handle that adjustment.
The purchasing process includes an approval layer intended to keep Alexa’s buying activity under the user’s control.
Other shopping tasks available through messages include:
- Tracking price drops.
- Maintaining shopping lists.
- Checking delivery status.
These capabilities bring core parts of the Alexa for Shopping experience from Amazon’s website and app into text conversations.
AI Assistants Move Into Everyday Conversations
Amazon’s move comes as more AI agents become available through chat and messaging experiences. Instinct supports text and voice conversations, while Meta has announced that US users can chat with and call its Muse AI agent through a dedicated app.
Amazon’s approach to its own shopping assistant also follows its decision to block third-party AI agents from its platform. Best Buy, meanwhile, has embraced third-party shopping agents.
FAQ
Who can use Alexa for Shopping through text messages?
The feature is initially available by invitation to a small group of US users. Amazon says access will expand to millions more users in the coming weeks.
Do I need to open the Amazon app to shop with Alexa?
Shopping conversations and purchases take place inside the messaging app. After signup and phone-number linking, users can text the Alexa Shopping contact to find products, compare options and place orders.
Can Alexa change an order I’ve already placed?
Alexa can add an item to an existing order and make the necessary adjustment. It can also help users check delivery status.
