Why Amazon’s Alexa Still Wins 7 Years Later

Thanks to Amazon for helping make this video possible

If you're interested in purchasing any of the products mentioned:
- Echo Dot: https://amzn.to/3yLPsug
- Echo Dot with Clock: https://amzn.to/30O8TGt
- Echo: https://amzn.to/3yPrEWk
- Echo Studio: https://amzn.to/3H7eSWp
- Echo Show 5: https://amzn.to/3pgEA4A
- Echo Show 5 Kids: https://amzn.to/3pgxflo
- Echo Show 8: https://amzn.to/3mobNZW
- Echo Show 10: https://amzn.to/3eadnKF
- Fire TV Stick: https://amzn.to/3EhCPbF
- Fire TV Stick 4K: https://amzn.to/3H2AnHP
- Fire TV Stick 4k Max: https://amzn.to/3qn5VSa
- Fire TV Omni Series: https://amzn.to/3pj3e4K
- Fire TV Series 4: https://amzn.to/3mo1027
- Blink Outdoor: https://amzn.to/32uDSIc
We may earn a commission for our links

0:00 How Alexa Started
2:00 The Misconception
2:35 Alexa's Origins
3:06 Reliability
3:43 Open
4:27 Price
5:01 Versatility
5:41 Innovation
7:55 Privacy
8:20 Conclusion

Yes, Alexa just turned 7 years old, and if I'm honest, I'm not shocked by its success. See, when it launched back in 2014, it did so in the most unconventional manner. While Apple was only doing Siri on phones and the Google Assistant was still 2 years away, Amazon decided to create a.. Smart speaker?

I know! For all of us today this sounds fairly logical, but seven years ago it made no sense. Bluetooth Speakers were barely taking off and streaming services still weren't what they are today. And then there was the fact that it lacked a screen, so what bolder way to prove that a company would trust its own voice assistant, than by creating a product that would fully rely on it.

Now what's fascinating is that the experiment didn't just work, but shifted the paradigm from the idea that a digital assistant should live on your phone, to the concept of having smart products which today we know as the Internet of Things, or IoT for short. You also have to admire Amazon for how it was willing to play the long game. We didn't see the Google Home until 3 years later, Apple's HomePod took around 5 and the Samsung Galaxy Home never launched. During that time, we didn't just see the Echo evolve in capabilities but also in form factors and a robust group of products that can talk to it.

I think this little bit of history helps explain why Amazon's voice service has been so dominant for years, but the question is what makes it better, because being first is never a guarantee in the tech world. The company was nice enough to partner with us and help make this video to answer precisely that. I'm Jaime Rivera with Pocketnow and let's dive in.


Subscribe: https://bit.ly/pocketnowsub
https://pocketnow.com

Follow us:
https://flipboard.com/@Pocketnow
https://facebook.com/pocketnow
https://twitter.com/pocketnow
https://instagram.com/pocketnow

Graphics provided by: Motionvfx.com