Alexa Now Has Feelings

Digital voice assistants are here to make things easier for the consumer. These assistants can and will do a lot of things when they are told to do so; they can be commanded to check for weather updates, provide directions to specific destinations, and play some music.

While voice assistants can be programmed to respond specifically to certain queries, they aren't programmed to have one particular trait only found in humans: emotions. Now, it appears that one popular voice assistant is about to have it – or at least, sound like it.

Amazon has been working to give Alexa more lifelike speaking skills, TechCrunch reported. The new feature, called “Alexa Emotions,” simply allow the voice assistant to speak with a voice that sounds excited or disappointed.

In a blog, Amazon explained that the new feature uses Neural TTS (Text-to-Speech) technology. This technology allows the voice assistant to speak with users in a more natural-sounding tone. For example, Alexa will respond in a happy or excited tone when the user gives correct answers to trivia questions; or will respond with a sad tone when the user's favorite sports team lost a game.

Amazon noted that users like it when Alexa responds to them in a more natural-sounding way, particularly with a bit of emotion: “Early customer feedback indicates that overall satisfaction with the voice experience increased by 30% when Alexa responded with emotions,” Amazon said.

The new feature allows Alexa to speak with varying levels of excitement and disappointment. Alexa's voice can either be low intensity, medium intensity and high intensity excited; or low intensity, medium intensity and high intensity disappointed. It's worth noting that the tones allow the assistant to convey responses differently than when it speaks in a neutral tone.

For example, here's how Alexa expresses happiness at playing a losing game:

Amazon is also working on giving Alexa new “Speaking Styles.” Aside from speaking in the Standard Voice, the voice assistant will now be able to speak using the new “News” and “Music” speaking styles. Australian users can even make Alexa speak in an Australia-specific news speaking style. Amazon said both speaking styles are perceived to be more natural than the Standard Voice style.

The new feature is currently available for developers only. It's primarily focused on gaming and sports at the moment. Amazon hasn't announced when the feature will roll out just yet, so stay tuned for more updates as they come.