Amazon on Thursday announced Rufus, a shopping assistant that uses generative artificial intelligence to help users search for products.

Rufus is a new artificial intelligence shopping assistant that Amazon unveiled on Thursday.

The purpose of the tool is to assist consumers with product shopping and searching. Customers using the Amazon mobile app can voice or enter questions into the search field, and a chat window will pop up at the bottom of the screen. Questions like “What distinguishes road running shoes from mountain running shoe?” can be asked conversationally by users. or “Drop and pour-over coffee makers: a comparison.”

According to a blog post from Amazon, “Rufus significantly enhances how simple it is for customers to find and discover the best products to meet their needs.”

Rufus responds to inquiries by utilizing data from the internet, user evaluations, Q&As, and Amazon’s product database, according to the business.

Amazon stated that although it is already testing the service with a small number of American users, it plans to roll it out throughout the country in the upcoming weeks.

According to CEO Andy Jassy, generative AI will be used by the corporation in all of its divisions. After the bell on Thursday, Amazon will probably provide an update on its AI initiatives when it releases its fourth-quarter profits.

Taking advantage of the excitement generated by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Amazon has released several generative AI tools and services in recent months. The business has tried AI features to assist independent sellers in creating listings, as well as tools to respond to inquiries from customers and condense feedback. Aside from its retail division, Amazon has debuted Bedrock, a generative AI tool for cloud users, and Q, a chatbot for enterprises.