Everyone knows Alexa now, Amazon’s AI helper that first found a home on Echo speakers but has since expanded to countless other smart products.
Following Amazon’s latest Echo event, it looks like Alexa is going to become even smarter than before with several new features announced.
One of those new features includes Alexa Emergency Assist, making the AI even more helpful during an emergency. We’ve created this guide to explain everything you need to know about Alexa Emergency Assist, so keep on reading for the full breakdown.
What is Alexa Emergency Assist?
Alexa Emergency Assist is a new subscription service that allows you to use your Echo device (or any other Alexa-supported device) to call for help in an emergency.
By simply saying “Alexa, call for help” the AI assistant will be able to alert emergency services. Rather than contacting 911, Alexa will instead notify a “dedicated, professional-trained agent” for immediate help who is available to contact 24/7.
The Alexa Emergency Assist feature will also store important information such as your address, emergency contact information, allergies and medical information to aid the agent.
Alexa Emergency Assist is not a free service, requiring a subscription of $5.99 per month or $59 per year. Amazon says it will soon launch in the US and won’t be available in any other country for now. That means UK users won’t be able to get their hands on this new Alexa feature anytime soon.
This isn’t the only new upgrade that Alexa is getting in 2023. Amazon has also confirmed that a new feature called Alexa Eye Gaze will allow Fire Tablet users to navigate the software with their eye gaze. This should hopefully improve the accessibility of Amazon’s products, while also making it easier to control smart home products and playback for music and video.
Alexa will soon feature Character.ai support too, allowing users to chat to famous and fictional characters via an AI bot.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
