“Alexa, play some music” isn’t the only time Amazon is listening to you.
Amazon’s voice recognition software only listens when you say the word “Alexa,” right?
That’s what most Echo and Dot buyers think because that’s what the advertising leads you to believe. As if by magic, your Alexa-enabled device “wakes up” when you say its name. But think about that for a moment. After you say the magic word, your Alexa-enabled device must listen for your request, interpret it, and respond. Just how much does Amazon really listen to inside your home? How much you really know about how voice technology works when you unboxed your Alexa-enabled device?
(Fair warning: this is about to get awkward.)
You may have assumed your Echo or Dot listened and responded using the small computer housed inside the device itself. But that doesn’t make sense. The on-board computer simply isn’t powerful enough. And besides, Amazon continues to update the device. It must do this from a centralized server location. That’s the only place where there is enough computing power not only to interpret your request, but also to update Alexa with new “skills” from third-party vendors. That’s how your device now knows how to order a pizza. Amazon needed to partner with Domino’s Pizza (in the United States) to develop that interface.
