Amazon, Microsoft pledge mega AI investments in India

Amazon and Microsoft have announced significant investments in artificial intelligence (AI) in India, recognizing the country as an emerging hub for AI and cloud infrastructure. This move aligns with a broader trend of increased global tech investment in India, which has seen a surge in interest from major technology companies. In addition to its AI initiatives, Amazon is expanding its services across various sectors. The company has rolled out a new Alexa+ feature for Fire TV, allowing users to navigate to specific moments in movies on Prime Video using natural language voice commands. This feature enables users to say phrases like “Jump to the card scene in Love Actually” to quickly access particular scenes in films. The Alexa+ feature was previewed at Amazon's Devices and Services event in September. Furthermore, Amazon has expanded its same-day delivery service for perishable groceries to 2,300 cities across the United States. This service aims to enhance the convenience of grocery shopping for customers by providing faster delivery options for items that require quick consumption. The company plans to further extend this service to additional cities by 2026, indicating its commitment to improving grocery delivery capabilities. Additionally, Amazon is making changes to its Kindle Direct Publishing platform, allowing self-published ebooks to be available as DRM-free titles in PDF and EPUB formats. This shift is expected to provide authors with more flexibility in distributing their works, potentially broadening their audience reach. Overall, Amazon is actively enhancing its services in both grocery delivery and digital content, reflecting its ongoing efforts to improve customer experience across various sectors.