• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechAmazon

Amazon’s Alexa Now Can Lock Your Front Door

By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 28, 2016, 11:00 AM ET
Image courtesy of August.

Amazon’s voice assistant Alexa can order an Uber, check your credit card balance and even arrange for a Domino’s pizza to be delivered to your doorstep. Next up, it will be able to lock your door, thanks to an integration with August, a startup that makes Internet-connected door locks.

Embedded in Amazon’s voice-controlled Echo smart speakers, as well as its Fire TV video streaming device, Alexa answers questions and lets users order items like diapers from Amazon.com. Over the past year, a number of home automation and smart device companies have built their own skills (the Amazon name for Alexa’s apps) for Alexa, letting users turn their lights on or off, or control their thermostats with the voice assistant.

Launched in 2014, August’s smart lock lets homeowners essentially connect their lock to their smartphone, turning their phones into virtual keys. Consumers can use the app to lock and unlock their door, and keep track of who comes and goes. The startup also offers a internet connected doorbell which lets you see who’s at your door.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

With the new Alexa skill, August is letting users lock their doors by simply saying, “Alexa, ask August to lock the front door.” You can also check whether the door is locked.

But it’s worth noting that due to security constraints, you cannot unlock the door using Alexa, said August CEO Jason Johnson. That feature will come eventually, he added.

August also has an integration with Apple’s voice assistant, Siri, and Apple’s home automation platform, HomeKit, to allow iPhone and Apple Watch users to unlock their doors using a voice command. The difference between Siri and Alexa, explained Johnson, is that Siri is tied to an individual, which makes it more secure. Alexa isn’t yet tied to an individual, he added.

Review: Apple HomeKit vs. Amazon Alexa

But Charlie Kindel, director of Amazon Alexa Smart Home, said the e-commerce giant is working on ways to add security to Alexa skills. For example, with a Capital One integration, users have to enter a voice pin before accessing sensitive financial information.

Amazon is putting a lot of resources into Alexa and Echo, as the company looks to fend off competition from Google (GOOG) and possibly Apple (AAPL). In June, Amazon CEO and founder Jeff Bezos said that more than 1,000 people are working on Alexa’s technology, and he believes Alexa will become the fourth pillar of Amazon’s business, adding to Amazon Prime, its cloud business Amazon Web Services, and its online marketplace.

About the Author
By Leena Rao
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

AIResearch
AI ‘godfather’ Yoshua Bengio says he’s found a fix for AI’s biggest risks and become more optimistic by ‘a big margin’ on humanity’s future
By Sharon GoldmanJanuary 15, 2026
7 hours ago
outage
North Americasmartphones and mobile devices
If your phone is on SOS (and you can see this), yes, Verizon is having a major outage across the U.S.
By The Associated PressJanuary 14, 2026
15 hours ago
AIHiring
McKinsey challenges graduates to master AI tools as it shifts hiring hunt toward liberal arts majors
By Jake AngeloJanuary 14, 2026
18 hours ago
NewslettersCIO Intelligence
How Expedia’s CTO is using AI to transform work for 17,000 employees—and travel for millions
By John KellJanuary 14, 2026
19 hours ago
thiel
Personal FinanceTaxes
Peter Thiel makes his biggest donation in years to help defeat California’s billionaire wealth tax
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 14, 2026
19 hours ago
Jensen Huang
SuccessProductivity
The job market is broken, but Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is ‘fairly confident’ that AI will increase productivity and therefore, hiring—but there’s a catch
By Preston ForeJanuary 14, 2026
20 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Personal Finance
Peter Thiel makes his biggest donation in years to help defeat California’s billionaire wealth tax
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 14, 2026
19 hours ago
placeholder alt text
AI
'Godfather of AI' says the technology will create massive unemployment and send profits soaring — 'that is the capitalist system'
By Jason MaJanuary 12, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Despite his $2.6 billion net worth, MrBeast says he’s having to borrow cash and doesn’t even have enough money in his bank account to buy McDonald’s
By Emma BurleighJanuary 13, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
AI
Being mean to ChatGPT can boost its accuracy, but scientists warn you may regret it
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJanuary 13, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Future of Work
'Microshifting,' an extreme form of hybrid working that breaks work into short, non-continuous blocks, is on the rise
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 13, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Goldman Sachs top economist says Powell probe won’t change the Fed: 'Decisions are going to be made based on employment and inflation'
By Sasha RogelbergJanuary 12, 2026
3 days ago

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.