Amazon is reportedly planning a major Alexa update to keep up with new OpenAI and Google assistants

Amazon is planning a major upgrade to its Alexa voice assistant with generative AI later this year to keep pace with chatbots like those from OpenAI and Google, according to CNBC sources. The new version of Alexa will come with a monthly fee not included in the Prime subscription. Under founder Jeff Bezos, Alexa was considered an internal pet project, but lost priority with CEO Andy Jassy. Now, the Alexa team faces pressure to keep the voice assistant relevant. Amazon hopes to capitalize on Alexa's large installed device base. Challenges include the cost of generative AI and competition for AI talent. For the Alexa upgrade, Amazon wants to use its own large language model called Titan. Amazon is also said to be working on a cutting-edge language model codenamed Olympus, but there's been no word of it recently. Bezos is concerned that Amazon is falling behind in AI. Although he has stepped down as CEO, he remains very involved in Amazon's AI strategy, CNBC reports.