Amazon has begun letting select customers text its Alexa for Shopping AI agent with requests for help finding the right products, building shopping carts, making purchases and providing delivery updates.
The new Alexa texting option has only rolled out to a small group of customers in the United States by invitation only. Amazon will expand the function to millions of customers during the coming weeks, the company stated.
To get started, eligible Amazon shopper need to accept terms and link a phone number to start shopping using text messages through the Alexa for Shopping platform. Consumers who haven’t received an invitation can sign up on the Amazon landing page to get news and offers by text, and the will be among the first to know when the company invites more shoppers to try out the new agentic-AI service.
Consumers can text Alexa for Shopping with a range of requests, Amazon pointed out. They can ask for help searching for small appliances, purchasing a birthday gift, reordering dog food; and they can share a photo of an outfit spotted while scrolling and ask for similar looks. From there, Alexa for Shopping will seek products, compare options and message back with suggestions. On request, the agent can add items to a customer’s cart and complete a purchase.
Amazon reported it expanded Alexa for Shopping functionality recently by adding more than 100 new capabilities to make shopping faster and easier
“Customers often jot down what they need the moment they think of it in their notes, in their messages, in their group chats,” said Rajiv Mehta, Amazon vice president of Conversational Shopping. “Now with Alexa for Shopping, your personal shopping agent is just a text away. Message it what you need, and Alexa goes to work on your behalf: searching, comparing and buying so you can get on with your day.”
