Amazon puts Alexa in search bar

Amazon on May 13 moved its shopping assistant into the most prominent piece of real estate on its retail site: the search bar. The company said “Alexa for Shopping” is now available to U.S. customers on Amazon.com, in the Amazon Shopping app and on Echo Show devices, combining the product-focused Rufus assistant with the broader Alexa+ system. (aboutamazon.com) The change ends Amazon’s use of Rufus as a separate shopping brand less than two years after the company introduced it publicly in 2024. (neowin.net) Amazon said the new product is meant to give customers one place to ask questions, compare products, track prices and complete more of a purchase with fewer steps. (aboutamazon.com) More than 300 million customers used Rufus in 2025, according to Amazon’s announcement and coverage of the launch. That figure gives Amazon a large installed base as it folds shopping search, recommendations and purchasing tools into a single interface while rivals push their own AI shopping agents. (aboutamazon.com) ### What exactly changed inside Amazon’s search bar? Amazon said the main search bar on its app and website now serves as the entry point for Alexa for Shopping, replacing Rufus as the dedicated shopping assistant. The company described the new service as a combination of Rufus and Alexa+, its newer generative AI assistant. (aboutamazon.com) Rajiv Mehta, a vice president at Amazon who has previously described Rufus, said the earlier assistant was built to answer shopping questions using Amazon’s catalog, reviews, community Q&As and information from across the web. The new branding keeps those shopping functions but places them under Alexa, a name Amazon already uses across devices and services. (neowin.net) ### What can shoppers do with it now? Amazon said Alexa for Shopping can answer product questions, compare items side by side and make recommendations based on conversational context and customer preferences. The company also said the assistant can help users research products, surface deals and move toward a purchase from the same interface. (aboutamazon.com) A May 1 Amazon post about Rufus previewed several of the functions now associated with the new assistant, including checking price history, purchasing items when they hit a target price and shopping other merchants. Amazon customer-service pages also describe Alexa deal notifications for specific products and sale alerts. (aboutamazon.com) TechCrunch and other outlets reported that the assistant can automate parts of the shopping journey beyond Amazon’s own marketplace. Amazon’s own materials on agentic shopping say its tools can help customers shop “other merchants,” though the company’s May 13 announcement centered on the Amazon app, website and Echo Show. (aboutamazon.com) ### Why did Amazon fold Rufus into Alexa instead of keeping both? Amazon said in its announcement that it was “bringing together Rufus and Alexa+” to create one shopping assistant. The company framed the move as a simpler experience for customers, with no Prime membership or Echo device required to use it on the Amazon Shopping app and website. (aboutamazon.com) About Amazon said the full Amazon store experience is now available on Echo Show as part of the rollout. That gives Amazon one shopping assistant brand across desktop, mobile and Alexa hardware rather than separate surfaces for search and voice. (techcrunch.com) ### How does this fit into Amazon’s broader AI push in retail? Amazon said on May 13 that it has used AI in shopping for more than 25 years, from recommendation systems to newer conversational tools. In a separate company post, Amazon said Rufus was renamed Alexa for Shopping on May 13, tying the launch directly to its wider Alexa+ effort. (aboutamazon.com) CNBC, Axios and GeekWire reported that the move comes as OpenAI, Google and other companies push AI assistants deeper into shopping and product discovery. Those reports said Amazon is trying to make its own assistant more useful at the point where customers begin a purchase: the search box. (aboutamazon.com) ### Where can people find it next? U.S. customers can use Alexa for Shopping now on Amazon.com, in the Amazon Shopping app and on Echo Show devices, Amazon said. The company also said no Prime membership is required for the app and website version, while Alexa+ access on compatible devices is included with Prime or available as a $19.99-a-month standard plan. (aboutamazon.com 1) (aboutamazon.com 2) (cnbc.com)