Amazon is making a comeback in the smartphone industry over a decade after the unsuccessful launch of its Fire Phone. The tech giant is reportedly working on a new device, referred to by the codename “Transformer,” as per a report by Reuters citing unnamed sources.
This smartphone is being developed within Amazon’s Devices and Services division and is expected to highlight personalization features to facilitate access to its popular applications like Amazon Shopping, Prime Video, and Prime Music.
A significant aspect of the upcoming device is its integration with Alexa, Amazon’s smart home assistant. The company plans to enhance Alexa with artificial intelligence capabilities, enabling it to seamlessly connect with a wide array of Amazon devices and services. The shift towards AI is seen as a crucial element of the smartphone’s development, which is intended to foster greater usage of Amazon’s AI technologies among its users.
The new smartphone initiative is spearheaded by a relatively young division known as ZeroOne, led by J Allard, a former Microsoft executive known for his role in the development of the Xbox.
This latest development comes as Amazon intensifies its investments in artificial intelligence, having recently pledged $50 billion to OpenAI and forecasting a staggering $200 billion in capital expenditures focused on AI, chips, and robotics by 2026.
Amazon has also dedicated over a year to enhancing its Alexa assistant by incorporating generative AI features, which culminated in the launch of Alexa+ in February of this year. This upgraded assistant retains its core functionalities for smart homes while gaining new capabilities that align with those of leading AI conversational agents. Alexa+ is now capable of tasks such as planning travel itineraries, managing shared calendars, finding and saving recipes, recommending movies, and assisting with various inquiries and topics.
Despite the excitement surrounding this return to the smartphone market, Amazon has not released an official comment on the matter yet.
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