Amazon to turn Alexa into chatbot, allow users to type and chat with it

Amazon is testing typing functionality for Alexa on iOS devices which will allow users to send messages to Alexa rather than using voice, especially in situations like being at a public place or in a meeting where voice command is awkward.

The new feature, being rolled out as part of a public preview, was first spotted by The Ambient publication.

The new feature is available for iOS users in the Alexa smart home app.

Tap the keyboard icon that appears on the top left of the main menu of the app to access it.

According to an Amazon spokesperson, 'Type with Alexa' will allow you to interact with Alexa without using voice, "meaning everything you can currently say to Alexa can now also be typed using your Alexa mobile app".

"Type with Alexa is available to iOS customers in the US".

The company, however, did not reveal when this feature will be rolled out globally, or on Android.

Google Assistant already has this functionality.

Amazon is also adding new capabilities in its Alexa virtual assistant that will speak to you in more languages.

To date, Alexa was able to respond in two languages as it received the ability to automatically respond to English and other languages last year.

Now, users can enable a few more languages in the Alexa app -- German, French, Canadian-French, Japanese, Spanish, US-Spanish, and Hindi -- all paired with English.

--IANS

na/