Alexa+ launches in the UK, the first country in Europe to get Amazon's next-generation AI assistant

Key takeaways

Alexa+ is rolling out in the UK starting March 19 as part of an Early Access program.
The new Alexa is genuinely conversational, deeply personal, and designed to take action in the real world.
Alexa+ will be free during Early Access. Afterwards it’s free for Prime members or costs £19.99/month for non-Prime customers.

Alexa+ has arrived in the UK, marking the first European launch for Amazon’s next-generation AI assistant.

Starting March 19, Alexa+ will be available across Britain as part of an Early Access program, with hundreds of thousands of customers expected to receive invitations in the coming weeks.

Alexa is the most popular voice assistant in the UK. Over the last three years, UK customers have interacted with Alexa over 114 billion times.

Powered by generative AI, the new Alexa+ represents a meaningful leap forward from the original Alexa—it’s smarter, more conversational, deeply personalized, can get things done on your behalf, and is authentically British.

What makes Alexa+ different?

Alexa+ stands out from other AI assistants. Firstly, it has ambient intelligence: Alexa+ is always available, being there when you need it and fading into the background when you don’t.

To be truly ambient, Alexa+ operates throughout the day across your devices—it’s not sitting in a chat window waiting for a prompt. It’s there when you are rushing out of the door with your hands full, when you are coming home from work thinking about everything that needs to get done, or in the kitchen when you are making dinner catching up with family.

You can talk to Alexa+ naturally, easily change topics, and you don't need to repeat the wake word every time. Alexa+ can answer virtually any question, help with complex tasks, and remembers the context of conversations so you can seamlessly pick up wherever you left off—whether that be on an Echo device, Fire TV, in the Alexa app, or soon on browser.

You can start a conversation with Alexa+ in your lounge, pick it up in the app on your way to work, then continue it on your laptop later in the day. Every device and every endpoint is connected so Alexa+ never misses a beat.

It’s also deeply personal, learning your preferences, understanding your household’s routines, and adapting to your life. The more you interact with Alexa+, the more it gets to know you, and the more useful it becomes.

Arguably the biggest difference is that Alexa+ is designed to act in the real world. Alexa+ doesn't just give you information; it works with services customers know and love to complete tasks from start to finish, from making restaurant reservations to connecting with your Ring device to check if a package was delivered.

How is Alexa+ authentically British?

Alexa+ in the UK has been built to feel genuinely British.

Alexa+ knows what a "cuppa” is, will understand what you mean when you say you are “knackered,” and knows that “it’s nippy” means it’s chilly outside. It may even drop "you're taking the mickey" or "Bob's your uncle" into conversation.

Take something as simple as dates—in the U.S. people say "March 15th," but British people say "the 15th of March." Or take the word "entrée"—in the U.S. it means the main course, but in the UK it refers to a starter. Getting these details right is the difference between feeling understood and feeling like you're talking to a translator.

Local teams including engineers, linguists, and speech scientists at Amazon’s Tech Hub in Cambridge, UK, have used different techniques—such as reinforcement learning accent neutral speech representations, and regional embeddings—to make sure Alexa+ genuinely understands British customers.

What can Alexa+ do?

Most AI tools live in a tab on your browser or in an app on your phone, only providing you with information—it is then up to you to take the next step and act.

Alexa+ is different as it can do things for you from beginning to end such as order a takeaway, book a massage, order a gift for your mom’s birthday, or find a tradesperson.

To do this, Alexa+ works with thousands of services and devices customers use every single day. In the UK, that includes new partners such as OpenTable, with JustEat, Treatwell, and other popular British brands coming soon. That’s alongside current services like Philips, Amazon Music, Spotify, Apple Music, Prime Video, Fire TV, and Ring.

With Alexa+, UK customers can also stay informed on all the latest news thanks to sources like Reach, The Independent, The Guardian, Press Association, and Future Publishing.

Meanwhile, if you want to build the perfect smart home experience, Alexa+ can create something that’s simple, proactive, and intuitive. You can control multiple smart devices with a single request, create Routines using just your voice, and Alexa+ will even infer what you mean without an explicit ask, like knowing to adjust the temperature if you say you’re cold, or to dim the lights if you say it’s too bright.

How can UK customers try Alexa+?

Alexa+ is beginning to roll out in the UK starting March 19 as part of an Early Access program, which allows us to get Alexa+ in customers’ hands and get their feedback to continue improving the experience.

Customers who purchase a new eligible Echo device in the UK will be granted Early Access, and customers who already have a compatible device can register here to receive an invite. We plan to invite hundreds of thousands of customers in the coming weeks.

Alexa+ will be free for all customers during the Early Access period. After that ends, Alexa+ costs £19.99/month but will be completely free for Prime members.

This next-generation AI assistant is available on the vast majority of Echo devices. You'll also be able to try Alexa+ on compatible Fire TV devices and soon on web browser too.

How does Alexa+ protect customer privacy and security?

Alexa+ is designed to protect your privacy and security. It provides you with transparency. It puts you in control.

For example, you can review and manage your interactions with Alexa+ and available settings in the Alexa Privacy dashboard. This means being able to listen to exactly what Alexa heard, review the attachments you’ve shared, change how long your voice recordings are stored, and more, all in one stop—it's centralized and easy-to-find in the Alexa app and online.

Alexa-enabled devices are also designed with multiple layers of protections—this hasn't changed with Alexa+. You can still expect camera controls and a visual indicator that lets you know when Alexa is listening to your request. To learn more, you can visit the Alexa Privacy Hub.