How to Use Alexa’s Answer Update

How to Use Alexa's Answer Update

Amazon is always progressing and updating its features constantly. In yet another evolutionary measure in the artificial intelligence, race between Amazon and Google, off late, Amazon confirmed that a new trait called “Alexa’s Answer Update” will enable Alexa to seep into a question she doesn’t know the answer to, and notify users once she’s learned the answer.

Amazon is launching a feature called Answer Updates, first spotted by Voicebot.ai. It’s rolling out to users in the coming days. Amazon declares the attribute is a new way to develop Alexa’s “Knowledge Graph,” an informational database containing general knowledge that the smart assistant uses to answer the questions.

Formerly, Alexa would simply shut users with replies like “I don’t know that, but I’m always learning,” or “Sorry, I didn’t understand the question. However, with Alexa’s Answer Update enabled, Alexa will transmit an on-device notification when it learns the answer to a question asked earlier.” The newer, smarter Alexa will respond by saying, “OK, if you ask me a question and I don’t know the answer, but I find out later I’ll notify you.”

It’s another shot over the bow at Google Home, which has been trying hard to catch up to Amazon’s vigorous lead in market share. Nevertheless, a recent analysis by AdWeek exhibits Google’s expertise when it comes to A.I., as Google Home was found to be six times as likely as Alexa to respond a user’s question, a test that included over 3,000 realistic questions.

It’s been found that a lot of people were having a discussion with Alexa, some of these things didn’t even need a response. Some of them are like. ‘Alexa, I love you’, ‘I’m sad’, ‘I’m happy.’,‘Alexa, I’m lonely,’  We’re really considerate about some of the responses we have, at times you can be cheerful and other times you have to be thoughtful about it, if someone says, ‘I’m disheartened,’ how do you handle that?”

In the latest Alexa’s Answer Update, the prompt will be recommended randomly to customers, and an Amazon spokesperson simplified that it will be activated when you ask Alexa a realistic question it doesn’t yet know the answer to. If you want to check whether your device presently has Alexa’s Answer Update, simply say “Alexa, turn on Answer Update.” Answer Updates will be an opt-in feature that should roll out to Amazon Alexa users soon.

Here’s how Answer Update Works:

Conventionally, when you ask Alexa a question it doesn’t know the answer to, it will simply respond with a variation of “Sorry, I don’t know that one,” or “Hmm, I don’t know that.” Or “Sorry, I didn’t understand the question”. However, the Alexa’s Answer update has put an end to it.

Once this aspect rolls out, when you ask Alexa a question it doesn’t know the answer to, it will prompt you to enable Answer Updates. After you enable the feature, Alexa will inform you once it finds out the answer to a question you’ve asked previously. This could be a voice notification from Alexa itself, but since Alexa almost never speaks to its users voluntary, it’s more expected to be a smartphone notification from the Alexa app.

To turn on the feature, follow the enlisted steps:

  1. Log into an Alexa-enabled device.

This can be an Echo device or the Alexa app (for Android and iOS) on your smartphone.

  1. Say “Alexa, turn on Answer Update.

Alexa will reply “Okay, if you ask me a question and I don’t know the answer, but I find out later, I’ll notify you.” (There doesn’t appear to be a way to control this trait in the Alexa app or on the Echo Show’s and Echo Spot’s screens yet.

  1. To disable this feature, say “Alexa, turn off Answer Updates.

Alexa will respond, “Okay, I won’t notify you when I find out about answers to questions you asked earlier.”

To make your life easier,  we have come up with a video that provides further clarification about the Alexa’s Anwer Update. Click on the link below for the same:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEjuJTsGH0U

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