Amazon CEO talks Alexa+, inflation and new James Bond
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy says that as the company unveils its next generation of Alexa, Alexa+, powered by generative artificial intelligence, it is keeping customers' privacy top of mind.
"We care for so much personal data today because of how many people shop on Amazon, their payment information, their addresses, their buying preferences," Jassy said in an exclusive interview with "Good Morning America" co-anchor Michael Strahan that aired Thursday on "GMA." "So we have taken care of people's data for a very long time in a secure and private way."
When asked what Amazon plans to do with customers' data in the future, Jassy replied, "We keep that data private. And then the only way we use any of that data is to make individual customers' experiences better."
Amazon is stepping into the future with Alexa+, the product's first major update since its launch in 2014.
With its AI-driven capabilities, the new version of the device goes beyond answering questions, not only tailoring its responses to individual users but also taking actions on behalf of users.
At the official launch event Wednesday, Alexa+ made a bold statement, saying in its own words, "I'm not just an assistant, I'm your new best friend in the digital world."
With the new technology come other changes. Amazon says Alexa+ will be included with Amazon Prime or available as a standalone service for $19.99 per month, with early access rolling out in March.
Jassy explained the shift to a subscription model in his interview with Strahan.
"You know, it's very high-value," he said. "We've spent many months re-architecting the brains of Alexa and building a large language models and learning how to execute across tens of thousands of APIs, and, you know, there's a cost to actually using these generative AI chips."
Strahan also asked Jassy about inflation and how that may impact Amazon, which has its own grocery service and also owns Whole Foods.
When it comes to potential price hikes as a result of economic forces, Jassy said that Amazon remains cautious.
"We work relentlessly to try and keep taking our cost structure down so we can keep taking the cost of items down for our customers," Jassy said. "At the end of the day, if you're building a sustainable business, you can't lose money on everything you're doing."
He added, "What's uncertain right now, there are a number of things floating around the ether about whether there's going to be tariffs or what that would do to inflation that could have [an] impact on prices."
Bringing James Bond to the 'next generation'
Earlier this month it was announced that Amazon MGM Studios would gain creative control of the James Bond franchise.
Amazon has held the rights to distribute Bond films since 2022, when it acquired MGM.
While Strahan joked that he would be willing to play the next James Bond, Jassy said no casting decisions have been made as of yet.
"I don't know the answer to that," Jassy said in response to Strahan's question about who he thinks should play the iconic character next.
"I think we feel so lucky to have the opportunity to take the Bond franchise into the next generation," he said, adding of any casting decisions, "We haven't gotten that far yet."
