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How Amazon invested in tech with the Amazon Echo
FEBRUARY 2019 | MANE PRODUCT & TECHNOLOGY | 7
The Amazon Echo was first introduced in the US in June 2015 but was not introduced in the UK until over a year later in September 2016. Along with the release of the Echo came Alexa, the digital assistant. The device was initially used for common things like playing music and answering questions. Amazon used the name Alexa due to the fact it had a hard consonant with the X and therefore could be recognised with higher precision.
Over the years, Amazon have invested over $200 million in something called the Amazon Echo fund. This investment is aided to fund the fuel voice technology innovation. It focuses on how voice technology can improve customers’ lives. With Amazon investing this much into voice technology, it has shown throughout the new versions of the Amazon Echo, with Alexa the digital assistant becoming smarter and smarter in each new release.
Alexa started out as one device but has now expanded to a line of several devices. Starting at the low end Echo-Dot priced at £49.99 to the Echo Plus priced at £139.99. Alexa is still far ahead of its second place competitor, the Google Home device. The Google Home is priced at £129 which is over double the price of the Echo-Dot, Amazon have been able to capture the market by offering exceptional devices at affordable prices.
In 2017, Amazon went searching for their second headquarters and in 2018 announced New York and Virginia will be the home to HQ2. Both locations will receive a $2.5 billion investment which will allow Amazon to grow and expand even more they they already have.
The peak point for Amazon was in September 2018, when it reached $1 trillion market cap for the first time due to the stock price reaching $2,050.50.