Amazon Debuts AI-Powered Audio Chat for Product Pages
Amazon unveiled a new artificial intelligence tool on Tuesday designed to transform how shoppers interact with product pages. The feature enables users to ask specific questions about items and receive conversational audio responses generated in real-time, functioning as a virtual shopping assistant.
The company describes these responses as being delivered by “AI-powered shopping experts.” The goal is to provide a more natural, discussion-style experience that mimics the advice a consumer might receive from a knowledgeable employee in a physical store.
Streamlining the Shopping Experience
The “Join the chat” functionality is integrated into the broader “Hear the highlights” experience, which has been rolling out audio summaries for millions of products within the Amazon Shopping app since last May. By allowing users to ask questions—such as whether a specific sweater might be itchy or if a coffee maker is user-friendly—the tool aims to eliminate the need to manually sift through lengthy written descriptions or customer reviews.
According to Amazon, the AI is designed to build upon previous inquiries to ensure the conversation remains fluid and avoids repetition. As the company noted in a blog post, “Customers can ask questions and actually steer where the conversation goes. Every question they ask influences what comes next.”
How to Access the Feature
Users can engage with the tool by following these steps:
- Navigate to a product page within the Amazon Shopping app.
- Select the “Hear the highlights” button located underneath the product image.
- Listen to the initial audio overview or tap the “Join the chat” icon to initiate a specific inquiry via text or voice.
The audio interface is designed to continue playing even as the user navigates to different sections of the app.
Expanding the AI Ecosystem
This launch represents the latest expansion of Amazon’s suite of generative AI tools for retail. The company continues to invest heavily in automated shopping assistance, with a portfolio that currently includes:
- Rufus: A generative AI assistant built for product research and comparison.
- Interests: A system that tracks and highlights items based on individual shopping preferences.
- Help me decide: A feature that provides product recommendations tailored to a user’s browsing and purchase history.
The “Hear the highlights” feature is currently available to customers in the U.S., though it remains limited to select products at this stage.