Amazon rolls out generative AI shopping tool Rufus to all US customers

Dive Brief:

• Amazon has extended Rufus, a generative artificial intelligence-powered conversational shopping assistant, to all of its U.S. customers in the Amazon Shopping app, the e-commerce giant announced Friday. 
• Using Rufus, shoppers can view previous orders, ask about product updates, compare items and review product details, per the company. 
• So far, Rufus has received “tens of millions of questions” from customers, the company said.

Dive Insight:

Amazon has rolled out Rufus to all of its U.S. shoppers after introducing the tool in February. While debuting Rufus during a call with analysts, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the tool marked “a significant customer experience improvement for discovery.”

“While it’s still early days for both generative AI and Rufus, we’re excited to hear customers are using Rufus to help them make more informed shopping decisions,” Rajiv Mehta, vice president of search and conversational shopping at Amazon, said in a statement. “As we continue to grow and improve upon Rufus, we’re looking forward to seeing how customers continue to use it to find exactly what they need or want in our store.”

The company named Rufus after a Welsh corgi, the pet of then-employees Susan Benson and Eric Benson who brought the dog to the company’s warehouse and meetings in 1996. 

Alongside Amazon, other major companies have invested in generative AI tools to enhance the customer experience. Last December, Dynamic Yield by Mastercard introduced Shopping Muse, a generative AI tool that provides custom product recommendations based on colloquial language, such as “cottagecore” or “beach formal.” Both Target and Walmart have also provided generative AI tools for store associates to help shoppers. 

As major retailers bring generative AI into their businesses, consumers expect to use these tools as part of their shopping journey. According to a recent Adobe survey, 58% of respondents said generative AI has enhanced their online shopping experience. The survey also found that over half of respondents said they would likely use generative AI to help with their apparel shopping.