Alexa sees 200% jump in connected smart devices in last three years: Amazon

Smarter homes: There has been a 200 per cent spike in smart home devices connected to Alexa in India in the last three years, according to American e-commerce major Amazon.

The virtual assistant technology debuted in India six years ago, and is used for voice-based commands to play music, set reminders and other updates.

As per the recent study, light control or asking the device to switch lights on and off emerged as one of the most common smart home requests.

Moreover, around 80 per cent of Alexa’s smart home users have started their journey by purchasing an Echo smart speaker bundled with a smart bulb, Amazon added.

On the other smart devices bundled with the virtual assistant, Amazon said there is a 100 per cent jump in requests to Alexa for controlling compatible smart home appliances in the league of smart lights, plugs, fans, TVs, security cameras, ACs, water heaters, and air purifiers.

Alexa's utility in controlling smart fans and smart ACs went up by 37 per cent, becoming the highest amongst all smart home appliances.

"Since we launched Alexa and Echo smart speakers in India, the smart home sector has evolved significantly, and voice technology has played a massive role in this. Customers can easily set up a smart home by getting a compatible smart bulb and instantly control with Alexa, or get a smart plug to automate existing appliances. It's clear that more people are seeing how setting up a smart home is not as complex as they had imagined,” Parag Gupta, Director and Country Manager, Amazon Devices, India said.

Notably, Amazon said it is further enhancing the Alexa experience with new features, including a redesigned Alexa app, an Alexa Connect Kit smart bulb for simplified setup, wake-up lighting capabilities, and timed actions for efficient automation. 

The company has also announced discounts on Echo smart speakers, Fire TV Stick, and Alexa smart home combos upto 50 per cent.