Amazon announced on Thursday a new 'Sassy' personality option for Alexa+, an adults-only style designed for users who want their voice assistant with attitude. The new Sassy style can curse and roast you, but the fun ends there.
This marks the fourth personality option for Amazon's AI-powered assistant. The new option joins Brief, Chill, and Sweet, which launched last month. Each style adjusts how Alexa communicates without changing what it can do.
When users toggle on Sassy in the Alexa mobile app, they are warned that the style uses explicit language, which is why it requires a security check; on iOS, this involves a Face ID scan. Users will be required to go through additional security checks in the Alexa app before enabling Sassy, and the personality style will not be available when Amazon Kids is enabled.
Amazon has taken pains to establish guardrails. The new option will not get into areas like explicit sexual content, hate speech, illegal activities, personal attacks, or anything that could cause harm to oneself or others. This distinction is important. Unlike some emerging AI companions designed specifically for adult interaction, Sassy is positioned as a communication style rather than a content platform.
The move is the latest example of how Amazon is trying to make Alexa+ more customizable as it revamps the assistant for the generative AI era, borrowing from a broader trend in AI where companies experiment with tone, style, and personas to make their assistants more engaging and personalised to individual users.
The timing reflects competitive pressures in voice AI. Chatbot users have shown a preference for controlling how their AI responds, even writing custom instructions to dictate the AI's personality; OpenAI launched new ChatGPT features in December that allow users to adjust the AI's base style and tone in terms of its warmth, enthusiasm, and use of emojis. Amazon's approach to personality styles suggests the company views conversational customisation as a key differentiator for its premium tier.
For Australian users, Alexa+ features remain limited to the US market currently, though the personality styles are now available to Alexa+ customers in the US, with Amazon indicating that further updates may follow. The expansion of customisation options reflects broader industry trends toward making AI assistants feel less generic, even as safety boundaries remain firmly in place.