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

Alexa Wants You to Buy More Stuff on Amazon

By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 1, 2016, 11:48 AM ET
Photograph by Getty Images

Amazon added a new skill for its voice assistant Alexa on Friday, and it could help the e-commerce giant add even more revenue to its already billions in yearly sales from selling everything from toilet paper to toothpaste.

Alexa has become popular through its ability to answer questions, turn on lights, and re-order items like diapers directly through the e-commerce giant’s voice-controlled home devices Echo and Echo Dot as well as its streaming device, Fire TV. Users simply utter a command instructing Alexa, like “Alexa, re-order Huggies Diapers” and Alexa will fulfill the order for diapers to arrive at shopper’s doorsteps.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Previously, you could only use Alexa to re-order items you already bought on Amazon, but with today’s update, now you can tell Alexa you want to buy any one of its tens of millions of items that are sold on Amazon. The one caveat is that the item must be a Prime product, meaning it is fulfilled by Amazon and can be shipped to shopper’s doorsteps within two days or less.

So if your daughter or son wants a Elsa doll from Disney’s Frozen movie, you simply ask, “Alexa, please order the Elsa doll from Frozen,” and Alexa will suggest a toy that fits that description. You then say “yes” to continue the transaction, and Alexa will take care of charging your credit card, and shipping the product to your home.

The benefit for this skill for Amazon is that it’s yet another way for its shoppers to buy more items from the e-commerce juggernaut. The idea is to make commerce so easy for customers that they barely think about it—and, of course, help increase Amazon’s business.

For more on Amazon, watch:

Amazon is putting a lot of resources into Alexa and Echo as the company looks to fend off competition from Google and possibly Apple. Earlier this month, 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 retail 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
Fortune Secondary Logo
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
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • 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
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • 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

crew aboard artemis II
Innovationspace
‘It’s 13 minutes of things that have to go right’: Artemis II splashes down despite faulty heat shield
By Catherina GioinoApril 10, 2026
4 hours ago
The Navy confirmed an ‘abundant amount’ of Uncrustables when the Artemis II crew lands. Smucker’s just offered them a lifetime supply
PoliticsFood and drink
The Navy confirmed an ‘abundant amount’ of Uncrustables when the Artemis II crew lands. Smucker’s just offered them a lifetime supply
By Catherina GioinoApril 10, 2026
7 hours ago
Three people sit behind a desk and look at the phone screen of the person in the middle.
Future of WorkConsulting
Meet ‘trendslop,’ the new, AI-fueled scourge of workplace consultants everywhere
By Sasha RogelbergApril 10, 2026
7 hours ago
Amazon is still paying Jeff Bezos an $80,000 yearly salary—but $1.6 million for travel and security
Big TechCEO salaries and executive compensation
Amazon is still paying Jeff Bezos an $80,000 yearly salary—but $1.6 million for travel and security
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezApril 10, 2026
9 hours ago
Kash Patel sits with his two fingers on lips
CybersecurityIran
First they went after medtech, then Kash Patel. Iranian hackers’ next target is likely ‘low-hanging fruit’ in water, energy, and tourism, experts say
By Jacqueline MunisApril 10, 2026
9 hours ago
scott bessent
CybersecurityFederal Reserve
The AI that found 27-year-old vulnerabilities no human ever caught before just forced an emergency meeting with every major Wall Street CEO
By Jake AngeloApril 10, 2026
11 hours ago

Most Popular

A Meta employee created a dashboard so coworkers can compete to be the company's No. 1 AI token user—and Zuckerberg doesn't even rank in the top 250
AI
A Meta employee created a dashboard so coworkers can compete to be the company's No. 1 AI token user—and Zuckerberg doesn't even rank in the top 250
By Fortune EditorsApril 9, 2026
2 days ago
The U.S. government is spending $88 billion a month in interest on national debt—equal to spending on defense and education combined
Economy
The U.S. government is spending $88 billion a month in interest on national debt—equal to spending on defense and education combined
By Fortune EditorsApril 9, 2026
2 days ago
Mark Cuban admits he made a mistake letting go of the Mavericks: 'I don't regret selling. I regret who I sold to'
Investing
Mark Cuban admits he made a mistake letting go of the Mavericks: 'I don't regret selling. I regret who I sold to'
By Fortune EditorsApril 9, 2026
2 days ago
Schools across America are quietly admitting that screens in classrooms made students worse off and are reversing years of tech-first policies
Innovation
Schools across America are quietly admitting that screens in classrooms made students worse off and are reversing years of tech-first policies
By Fortune EditorsApril 10, 2026
21 hours ago
Scottie Scheffler joined Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy in golf's $100M club—and donated his entire Ryder Cup stipend to charity
Success
Scottie Scheffler joined Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy in golf's $100M club—and donated his entire Ryder Cup stipend to charity
By Fortune EditorsApril 10, 2026
13 hours ago
'I hate working 5 days': Zoom CEO says traditional work schedules are becoming obsolete—and predicts a 3-day workweek by 2031
Success
'I hate working 5 days': Zoom CEO says traditional work schedules are becoming obsolete—and predicts a 3-day workweek by 2031
By Fortune EditorsApril 9, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 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.