Alexa+ is coming to the Amazon Music app

Amazon announced Tuesday that Alexa+, its AI-powered assistant, is coming to the Amazon Music app for iOS and Android devices.

The feature is currently available across all Amazon Music subscription plans, but is only available to users with early access to Alexa+. (To access Alexa+, press the “a” button in the bottom right corner and ask your question using your phone’s built-in microphone.)

The introduction of Alexa+ to Amazon Music aims to create a more conversational approach to music discovery. Unlike the previous version of Alexa, which only responded to basic commands, Alexa+ is designed to engage in natural dialogue.

Users can ask specific and vague questions, such as inquiries regarding an artist’s influences or exploring deeper meanings behind songs. It can also help to remember the song title by providing the lyrics of the song you remember or even mentioning the movie it appeared in.

Additionally, Alexa+ can create personalized playlists tailored to specific requests, such as “creating a playlist of 2000s hit songs that get me moving fast, starting with a Nicki Minaj track,” the company suggested.

Some other examples provided by the company include: “Can you recommend new music that will make me sound cool to my 13-year-old daughter without trying too hard?” and “What song plays during the opening credits of ‘The Sopranos’?”

Alexa+ was initially announced in February at the company’s hardware event and is billed as one of the first consumer-focused agent tools on the market. This assistant can perform actions on the user’s behalf, such as booking restaurant reservations and ordering groceries.

While Alexa+ is still in its early stages and not yet widely available to the public, it has already been rolled out to over a million users.

The company reported that Amazon Music listeners who tried this feature discovered three times more songs using Alexa+ than with the native assistant, and those searching for recommendations listened to approximately 70% more music.

In light of Spotify’s recent integration with ChatGPT, this could be a strategic move on Amazon’s part to compete with the music streaming giant and showcase its investments in AI. Amazon Music has already integrated several AI features into its app, and the latest additions are AI-generated weekly playlists, AI-assisted search, and “Explore,” which helps users learn more about their favorite artists.