Amazon is reportedly developing a powerful new AI chatbot, codenamed “Metis,” in a strategic effort to challenge the dominance of OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. According to internal documents and sources familiar with the matter, the project is a top priority for the company and falls under the direct supervision of CEO Andy Jassy.
The Metis chatbot is expected to be powered by an advanced, unreleased version of Amazon’s internal large language model, “Olympus.” This new AI assistant is being designed to offer sophisticated, agent-like capabilities, moving beyond simple question-and-answer interactions. Features are said to include providing up-to-date information by leveraging retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), sharing links to sources, suggesting follow-up questions, and performing complex tasks such as booking flights or creating itineraries.
This initiative represents a significant escalation of Amazon’s consumer-facing AI ambitions. While the company’s cloud division, Amazon Web Services (AWS), provides the foundational infrastructure for many AI companies, its primary consumer AI, Alexa, has struggled to keep pace with the rapid advancements in generative AI. Metis is positioned as the next-generation replacement for Alexa’s underlying technology, intended to make the voice assistant more conversational, intelligent, and useful.
The development of Metis signals Amazon’s refusal to be left behind in the generative AI race. With Microsoft heavily invested in OpenAI and Google pushing its Gemini models across its product ecosystem, Amazon is making a crucial play to capture a share of the consumer AI market. While no official release date has been announced, the project’s high-level oversight indicates a sense of urgency within the company to deliver a competitive product and redefine its presence in the age of AI assistants.
English 
Deutsch