But unlike before, when Alexa was offered for free on any Alexa-enabled devices, customers will have to pay Amazon a monthly fee of $19.99 for the revamped voice assistant, which it calls “Alexa+”. However, the generative-AI powered Alexa will be free for Prime members, who pay the company a monthly or annual fee for free delivery and other perks.

Amazon is aiming to catch up in generative artificial intelligence and to reboot its virtual assistant, which has been leapfrogged by powerful chatbots.

At a swank event for journalists and Amazon employees, the company on Wednesday unveiled its revamped voice assistant, Alexa+. The widely used technology has been bolstered with generative AI, the company has said, to make interacting with it feel more natural than simply repeating orders.