Amazon's Rufus: Their Conversational AI for shopping

Amazon's Rufus: Their Conversational AI for shopping

I thought it was worthwhile making sure we've documented Rufus, Amazon's Conversational AI for shopping.

Last week, Rajiv Mehta, Amazon's VP Search and Conversational Shopping wrote a post highlighting how the service is now available to every US consumer via the Amazon app.

Rajiv writes:

Earlier this year, we introduced Rufus, our new generative AI-powered conversational shopping assistant. Rufus is designed to help customers save time and make more informed purchase decisions by answering questions on a variety of shopping needs and products right in the Amazon Shopping app—it’s like having a shopping assistant with you any time you’re in our store. We’re pleased to share that Rufus is now available to all U.S. customers in the Amazon Shopping app.

My favourite example from Rajiv's post is this screenshot (see the full animation on the post):

Screenshot from Rajiv's announcement on AboutAmazon.com

Rufus asks: What do you need help with today?

The customer responds: What are the best lawn games for kids birthday parties?

Rufus then responds with a really good reply and begins to highlight some example products.

This!

This is what I like!

I've actually done this, dear reader. Quite often I've been sitting in front of my Amazon app saying to myself, "Now then, what would I need for X or Y"... and I've had to come up with ideas myself... only to completely forget whole sections of possibilities.

Rajiv doesn't give an indication of just how many conversations Rufus is handling but does mention this:

Customers have already asked Rufus tens of millions of questions, and we’ve appreciated their feedback so far. 

Rajiv's LinkedIn is right here:

Rajiv Mehta - Amazon | LinkedIn
International senior executive with deep sales, operations and supply chain management… · Experience: Amazon · Location: Seattle · 500+ connections on LinkedIn. View Rajiv Mehta’s profile on LinkedIn, a professional community of 1 billion members.

Good luck Amazon and good luck Team Rufus!

I'm looking forward to being able to use it when it becomes available to UK Amazon customers.