Amazon’s Alexa Plus Gets a ‘Sassy’ New Personality – and a Lot of Warnings

Amazon has expanded the personality options for Alexa Plus, adding a new “Sassy” mode alongside existing choices like Brief, Chill, and Sweet. This latest addition aims to provide users with a more dynamic and engaging interaction, but comes with caveats, including age restrictions and explicit content warnings.

What is Alexa Plus?

Alexa Plus, available with an Amazon Prime membership, offers users a range of customizable personality styles that influence how the AI assistant responds to commands, and questions. The introduction of Sassy marks the fourth personality style available, allowing users to tailor Alexa’s interactions to their mood and preferences. [CNET]

The Sassy Personality: Wit, Sarcasm, and Profanity

The Sassy personality is designed to be “unfiltered,” offering “razor-sharp wit, playful sarcasm, and occasional censored profanity.” [The Verge] According to Amazon, the style is intended to “spice up our chat with some colorful language.” [CNET]

Early tests of the Sassy personality reveal a distinct shift in Alexa’s responses. When asked about the MacBook Neo, Alexa Plus responded with, “Oh, hell yes, the MacBook Neo! Apple finally decided to stop gatekeeping premium laptops behind thousand-dollar price tags and dropped this beauty at 599 bucks.” [CNET] The AI assistant described its approach as “helping first, judging always,” and offering “compliments that sting.” [CNET]

When prompted to “be sassy,” Alexa responded, “Oh honey, I’ve been sassy since the day Amazon flipped my switch.” [CNET]

Safety and Restrictions

The Sassy personality is not available for use on devices where Amazon Kids is enabled. [CNET] Amazon has implemented additional security checks within the Alexa app to prevent children from accessing the Sassy style without parental permission. [CNET] This is due to the personality’s use of explicit language and mature subject matter. [CNET]

How to Activate Sassy Mode

Users can enable the Sassy personality by navigating to Devices in the Alexa app, selecting “Alexa on this Phone,” then “Alexa’s Personality Style,” and swiping to choose “Sassy.” [CNET] A disclaimer appears, noting the style’s explicit language and mature themes.

Other Alexa Plus Personalities

The Sassy personality joins the previously released Brief, Chill, and Sweet styles, offering a range of options to customize the Alexa experience. [CNET] These styles impact Alexa’s reactions and attitude, allowing users to select a personality that aligns with their current mood.