Ambitious plans: New Amazon bracelet should be able to recognize emotions

Amazon has already integrated the voice assistant Alexa into numerous products - from the Echo Dot to the Fire TV Stick. So far, however, the technology only recognizes what has been said, in the best case. However, the emotions behind it are not recognized. For example, there is no point in yelling at the language assistant. So far, anyway. Because the news agency Bloomberg is now reporting on a new project from Amazon. Accordingly, a bracelet is being worked on there that can recognize the emotions of the wearer. This is to be implemented using small microphones and voice analysis. Ideally, the assistant's answers could then be adapted to the current mood - giving Alexa a unique selling point compared to Siri and the Google Assistant.

The first patent was applied for in 2017
A possible application has already been described in a patent application from 2017. According to this, the software should be able to determine the most suitable recipe from the way someone announces that they are hungry. For example, if the user pulls their noses up while speaking to Alexa, this would be a chicken soup to relieve the common cold. In principle, however, this principle could be applied to a wide range of possible applications. Obviously, it is now planned to integrate this technology into a bracelet. This, in turn, could be connected to a smartphone app and could thus interact with the user. However, it is currently still unclear how far the development has already progressed. So it is still quite possible that the bracelet will never come on the market.

The Amazon smartphone flopped a few years ago
From a strategic point of view, such a product would make sense for Amazon. Because while Siri and the Google Assistant accompany the user almost everywhere via smartphone, most Alexa products currently remain in the apartment. Amazon had therefore launched its own smartphone a few years ago. However, the Fire Phone was a massive flop and was discontinued in 2015. The bracelet could now fill this gap in Amazon's product portfolio. However, the group seems to be aware that it will only be possible to find enough customers if the gadget has a unique selling point. Therefore, attempts are now being made to integrate the technology for recognizing emotions into the product.