Dive Brief:
- Amazon will continue investing heavily in AI to fuel new CX innovations, including in AI agents, CEO Andy Jassy said on a Q1 2025 earnings call last week.
- Alexa+, an upgraded version of the Alexa home assistant with agentic AI capabilities, reached more than 100,000 users to a positive response since it started rolling out over the past several weeks, according to Jassy.
- The current slate of AI-based investments only scratch the surface of what Amazon is planning to reinvent customer experiences, according to Jassy. “I would say we're not even at the second strike of the first batter in the first inning,” he said during the call.
Dive Insight:
Not all of Amazon’s AI applications are specifically aimed at experience goals, but investments in the technology are still laying the groundwork for the future of CX.
“If you believe your mission is to make customers' lives easier and better every day and you believe that every customer experience will be reinvented with AI, you're going to invest very aggressively in AI, and that's what we're doing,” Jassy said.
Alexa+ will play a major role in the future Jassy painted. Jassy recalled a time when he visited New York City and had Alexa+ list off Italian restaurants and then make a reservation on his behalf. He expects the convenience of experiences like this to change how people view AI-powered agents.
“It is really like having a great personal assistant, which most people in the world don't have,” Jassy said. “And so, I think that the more and more that people get used to it, they will realize what she can do.”
Alexa+ is just one of more than 1,000 generative AI applications Amazon is developing across its business to improve CX. Other recent AI launches include the Rufus conversational shopping assistant and Buy for Me, an agentic AI feature, that can buy items from third-party sites through the Amazon Shopping app.
CX experts expect agentic AI to become a customer experience staple. While the technology is in its early days, experts say now is the time for companies to invest in the foundations that will support AI advancements as they hit the mainstream.
Jassy gave updates on Amazon’s AI investments against a backdrop of strong financial performance. Net sales increased 9% year over year to $155.7 billion in the first quarter of 2025, according to a company earnings report. Operating income rose 20% year over year to $18.4 billion.
However, AI can’t solve all of Amazon’s customer experience challenges, particularly as tariffs loom. The e-commerce giant recently considered flagging to consumers some price hikes as caused by tariffs, but ultimately decided against it.
“The external environment remains complex, and as we have done throughout our history, we are focused on the inputs that we can control to protect the customer experience,” SVP and CFO Brian Olsavsky said during the call. “We will work hard to remain the place customers trust for sharp prices, broad selection and convenience.”
