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Diving overview:
- Amazon now allows customers to ask questions to an AI host via text or voice while listening to audio summaries of products, the e-commerce company announced last week.
- The ability to participate in chats within Hear the Highlights moves customers “from listening to participating,” according to the announcement. The AI host can take questions in real-time and resume the audio summary after answering.
- When a shopper asks a question, the tool uses product information, customer reviews and other information to provide a customized response before continuing, Rajiv Mehta, Amazon’s vice president of conversational shopping, said in a statement.
Dive Insight:
Amazon’s latest AI feature, Join the Chat, aims to provide shoppers with a more customized experience by understanding the context around their questions.
“AI hosts do not provide general answers; they consider what has already been covered and respond with new and relevant information,” Mehta wrote. “Customers are part of the experience, not in the way.”
This feature is part of Hear the Highlights, which was first introduced a year ago and provides short-form audio product summaries on millions of product pages. Each summary begins with an AI-generated script that adapts in real-time as questions are asked.
“This approach creates something different: an experience that is informative and adaptive,” Mehta said. “Customers can ask questions and really direct the conversation. Every question they ask influences what’s next, making it a conversation experience that customers can participate in and customize.”
In addition to the ability to participate in chats, Amazon has deployed AI in other ways to help shoppers quickly cut through the noise of reviews and product descriptions to find the right product. In 2023, Amazon began using generative AI to synthesize customer reviews from verified purchases.
In addition to aggregating product information, Amazon leverages AI to provide product recommendations. About a year ago, the retailer debuted an interest feature that allowed some app and mobile users in the U.S. to enter custom prompts and discover products based on their hobbies and passions.
In addition to using AI to help customers navigate a myriad of products, Amazon also leverages AI to help sellers write product descriptions. In 2023, the retailer began using AI to help sellers create product descriptions that include titles, product details, and bulleted lists. That same month, eBay made a similar move, launching a “Magical Listing” tool that detects details from images and generates product listings.
