Amazon Launches AI Shopping Assistant 'Rufus' in India

Amazon launches AI assistant 'Rufus' in India

Amazon has launched AI assistant Rufus for customers in India, which will help shoppers get product recommendations, compare customer responses etc. It is available in beta mode for now. It was rolled out to all customers in the US in July.Ecommerce major Amazon India has launched its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered shopping assistant 'Rufus' in India, the firm said in a statement. Rufus is currently available in beta mode in India, and available only to some customers, Amazon added. The assistant can help shoppers get product recommendations, access shopping list advice, compare product categories and see what other customers have said in response to their specific questions. Rufus will be rolled out to more customers "in the coming weeks", Amazon said. The chatbot was first announced in the US in February this year, after which it was rolled out widely to all customers in the US in July. It has been trained on Amazon's own data around product catalogue, community discussions and customer reviews, among other things, and runs on an internal large language model (LLM) specialised for shopping. "It's still early days for generative AI, and the technology won't always get it exactly right. We will keep improving our AI models and fine-tune responses to continuously make Rufus more helpful over time. Customers are encouraged to leave feedback by rating their answers with a thumbs up or thumbs down, and they have the option to provide freeform feedback as well," Amazon said in a statement. The assistant will be visible on the bottom right of the navigation bar, following which a chat dialogue will appear. Customers can expand the chat dialogue box to see answers to their questions, tap on suggested questions, and ask follow-up questions. In October last year, rival Flipkart had launched its own shopping assistant called Flippi, powered by Open AI's ChatGPT. Amazon's announcement also comes ahead of the highly anticipated festive season sales in India.

Amazon Rufus AI-Powered shopping assistant launched in India

Amazon has announced the beta launch of Rufus, a new generative AI-powered conversational shopping assistant, in India. Rufus, introduced earlier this year, aims to enhance the shopping experience on Amazon by providing expert advice and recommendations through its extensive knowledge of Amazon's product catalog and additional online sources. Expert Assistance: Rufus is trained on Amazon's product catalog and supplementary web data to answer questions about products, comparisons, and recommendations within the Amazon shopping platform. Broad Research: Users can begin their shopping journey with general queries like "what to consider when buying a washing machine" or "how to choose the right moisturizer," receiving relevant guidance for their search. Occasion-Based Shopping: Rufus helps users find products for specific events or purposes, such as "gifting ideas for a birthday" or "essential items for a hike." It provides suggestions for product categories and relevant questions for deeper exploration. Comparisons: Users can compare products by asking questions such as "4K OLED TV vs. 4K LED TV" to make well-informed purchasing decisions. Personalized Recommendations: Rufus offers tailored suggestions based on specific needs, such as "best gifts for Valentine's Day" or "top dinosaur toys for a 5-year-old." Product Updates: Users can stay informed about the latest trends and products by asking questions like "top gaming laptops." Detailed Product Inquiries: On product detail pages, Rufus answers specific questions like "is this jacket machine washable?" using information from product listings, reviews, and Q&As. Rufus is currently available in beta to select customers on the Amazon.in mobile app. Amazon also stated that it plans to continually improve Rufus by refining its AI models based on user feedback and ratings.

Amazon's Rufus now available in India: Know all about AI shopping assistant

Following its debut in the US, Amazon is introducing its artificial intelligence-powered shopping assistant, Rufus, to its mobile app in India. The company announced that Rufus, trained on Amazon's product catalogue and extensive web information, will assist users with shopping queries, recommendations, and product comparisons. Currently available in beta, Rufus can be accessed by select users on the Amazon app, with a broader rollout expected in the coming weeks. The Rufus icon will appear at the bottom right corner of the screen for eligible customers. Tapping the icon opens a chat interface with the AI chatbot, allowing users to select suggested queries or enter their own. Rufus also supports follow-up questions, maintaining a conversational tone.

Amazon brings AI shopping assistant, Rufus in India: Details - Times of India

Amazon has launched its artificial intelligence (AI) shopping assistant - Rufus in India. The AI shopping assistant was launched in the US in February earlier this year. It will be available to select Amazon customers in India with the next update. Amazon says that Rufus helps customers make better, more informed shopping decisions by generating answers using relevant information from across Amazon.in and the web.Announcing the Rufus AI assistant in India, Amazon said "We are excited about the potential of generative AI and will continue testing new features to make it even easier to find and discover, research, and buy products in the Amazon.in marketplace. We look forward to progressively rolling out the beta version of Rufus to additional customers in the coming weeks." How to access Rufus in Amazon app Rufus AI shopping assistant will be available on the bottom right of Amazon app's navigation bar, following which a chat dialogue box will appear on their screen. Customers can expand the chat dialogue box to see answers to their questions, tap on suggested questions, and ask follow-up questions. To return to the traditional search results. Users can dismiss Rufus by swiping down to send the chat dialogue box back to the bottom of their screen. "From broad research at the start of a shopping journey such as "things to consider when buying a washing machine", to comparisons such as "should I get a fitness band or a smart watch?" to more specific questions such as "are these durable?", Rufus meaningfully improves how easy it is for customers to find and discover the best products to meet their needs, integrated seamlessly into the same Amazon shopping experience they use regularly," the company said. The TOI Tech Desk is a dedicated team of journalists committed to delivering the latest and most relevant news from the world of technology to readers of The Times of India. TOI Tech Desk's news coverage spans a wide spectrum across gadget launches, gadget reviews, trends, in-depth analysis, exclusive reports and breaking stories that impact technology and the digital universe. Be it how-tos or the latest happenings in AI, cybersecurity, personal gadgets, platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and more; TOI Tech Desk brings the news with accuracy and authenticity.

Rufus, Amazon's AI Assistant, is Now Live in India

In a bid to help customers make better, more informed shopping decisions, Rufus generates answers using relevant information from across Amazon.in and the web Rufus, a generative AI expert, aimed at enhancing customer experience by making shopping more easier and convenient, is now launched in India on 27th August 2024. With its initial rollout in the US earlier this year, Rufus is now open to only select customers for now. "Customers in the U.S. have already asked Rufus tens of millions of questions, and we're excited to introduce it in India." said Amazon in a blog post. In a blog post, Amazon detailed how Rufus seamlessly transforms the customer's shopping experience through a wide range of queries. The aim is to maximise AI to effectively meet the customers' needs. Per Amazon, customers using Rufus on Amazon.in can enhance their shopping experience in several ways. They are offered tailored information, product comparisons, personalised recommendations, among other things. Rufus is not new to this market. In 2023, Myntra collaborated with Microsoft to launch "My Stylist" a feature that recommends complete, shoppable looks tailored for fashion-forward customers. In the same year, they launched MyFashionGPT, a tool that enables users to search using natural language to give relevant suggestions. Even Flipkart leveraged LLMs, through AI-driven 'Flippi' to simplify shopping experience. As of last week, Seematti, a retail brand, launched India's inaugural AI fashion ambassador, Isha Ravi, who as an Indian young woman with a passion for colour and travel, represents the brand in the Indian landscape. In the past 25 years, Amazon has built their suite of AI backed customer offerings. Personalised recommendations, like Alexa, have been successful for Amazon in the past. Amazon's AI generated review highlights and product listings have enabled customers to shop better in the past. Rufus is at the heart of this AI expansion. Speaking on the potential of Generative AI in the e-commerce space, Amazon recognises that while Generative AI is still in its early stages, they are committed to improving their models and make Rufus better over time. In the upcoming weeks, the beta version of Rufus will be extended to more customers.

Amazon launches AI-powered shopping assistant chatbot Rufus in India

Amazon is introducing its generative AI chatbot Rufus to India-based customers soon, as the e-commerce giant seeks to make the new Gen AI technology a crucial part of its operations. Rufus is a "new generative AI-powered conversational shopping assistant," according to Amazon, that can help shoppers get product recommendations, access shopping list advice, understand their requirements, compare product categories, get gift ideas for special occasions, or see what other customers have said in response to their specific questions. "Rufus suggests shoppable product categories -- from consumer electronics to Fashion and Beauty and Home Decor -- and related questions that customers can click on to conduct more specific searches. Because Rufus can answer a wide range of questions, it can help customers at any stage of their shopping journey by answering questions not obviously related to shopping, for example, "what do I need to make dal makhani?"" said Amazon in a blog post. When Amazon's new AI tool Rufus answers shoppers' queries, who benefits? (Unravel the complexities of our digital world on The Interface podcast, where business leaders and scientists share insights that shape tomorrow's innovation. The Interface is also available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.) Rufus is launching in beta to some customers using the Amazon.in mobile app, but will be rolled out to more users in India over the next few weeks. The e-commerce platform warned that Rufus might not always generate a fully correct response, and urged customers to leave their feedback when using the chatbot. "It's still early days for generative AI, and the technology won't always get it exactly right. We will keep improving our AI models and fine-tune responses to continuously make Rufus more helpful over time," said Amazon. The company had earlier deployed AI-powered review highlights to give shoppers a concise overview of what reviewers were saying about the products they had bought. Read Comments

Amazon Rolls Out AI Shopping Assistant In India, Nearly A Year Behind Walmart-Backed Flipkart - Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN)

This story was originally published on the Benzinga India portal. Amazon.com Inc. AMZN has announced the launch of its artificial intelligence-powered shopping assistant, Rufus, in India. This comes after the successful introduction of Rufus in the United States six months prior. What Happened: Amazon extended its AI shopping assistant Rufus to India on August 27. This move is a part of Amazon's strategy to incorporate generative AI features into its services in a competitive AI landscape that includes tech giants like Microsoft, Google and Meta. Starting Tuesday, select customers on the Amazon mobile app will have access to the AI assistant, with a wider rollout planned in the upcoming weeks. Rufus, which was first introduced in February, is designed to assist customers with product discovery, answering shopping queries, comparing products and providing recommendations. If you want to keep up with all the latest stock market updates in India, sign up for the Benzinga India weekly newsletter. Rufus will be located on the bottom right of the app's main navigation bar, opening a chat dialogue box on the user's screen. Users can expand the chat dialogue box to view answers to their questions, tap on suggested questions and ask follow-up questions. Competitor Flipkart launched a similar shopping assistant, Flippi, in October 2023. Over the past year, Amazon has introduced several generative AI-powered features in the Amazon marketplace, including AI-generated review highlights and enhanced product listings. Read Next: Samsung Rival LG Follows In Hyundai's Footsteps, Mulls India IPO: Report Disclaimer: Artificial intelligence was used as a secondary aid in the writing of this story. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs