Amazon's Alexa turns 5 in India, can now speak in male voice too

Indian users, for the first time, will be able to switch between Alexa's original voice and a new masculine sounding voice, Amazon said on Thursday as its virtual assistant completed five years in India.

Amazon, in a statement marking the milestone, said millions of customers across India have purchased Echo devices.

"For the first-time, Indian users will be able to switch between Alexa's original voice and a new masculine sounding voice. The new voice can respond in both English and Hindi languages," the statement said.

Users can change Alexa's voice by saying "Alexa, change your voice" on the Echo device or from the Alexa app by going to individual device setting and selecting Alexa's voice.

"In 2022, requests to Alexa on Echo Smart speakers, Amazon Shopping App, Fire TV and many Alexa-enabled devices by other brands increased by 37 per cent versus 2021 - making it a household name across the country. Maximum new customers started their Alexa journey on the Amazon Shopping App (Android only) - leading to over 55 per cent increase in monthly active users year on year," it said.