Looks like Amazon is getting back into the smartphone game. More than 11 years after the e-commerce giant pulled the plug on its failed first effort, the Fire Phone, the company is now developing a new smartphone codenamed “Transformer,” according to Reuters. was mentionedciting anonymous sources.
The device is being developed by the company’s Devices and Services division and will have customized features that will make it easier to use Amazon’s suite of apps, including Amazon Shopping, Prime Video and Prime Music, the report said.
The smartphone will also support Alexa, the smart home assistant that Amazon has invested heavily in, adding AI chops and expanding support to work with most of the company’s devices. AI features are said to be a big focus for the smartphone, which is seen internally as a way to encourage Amazon customers to use its AI products, Reuters reported.
The smartphone is said to be developed by a relatively new unit in the Devices division called ZeroOneled by J Allard, a former Microsoft executive who helped create the Xbox.
The news comes as Amazon has gone all-in on AI, recently investing $50 billion in OpenAI and projecting $200 billion in capital spending for its AI, chip and robotics efforts by 2026.
The company spent more than a year revamping the Alexa assistant with artificial intelligence capabilities, finally launching it in February this year as Alexa+. The assistant keeps its smart home chops and can now do most of the things other AI chatbots can do—like planning a route for a trip, updating a shared calendar, finding and saving recipes in a library, making movie recommendations, helping with homework, researching a topic, and more.
Amazon declined to comment.
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