Amazon Replaces Rufus With Alexa Plus AI Shopping Assistant Across Site and App

Com on May 13, 2026, turning its LLM-powered AI assistant into a central part of the shopping experience. Users typing queries into the main search bar now interact with Alexa for Shopping, the company's new AI-powered shopping assistant powered by Alexa Plus.

A search for everyday items such as toilet paper still returns product lists, but more complex questions such as "What's a good skincare routine for men" or "When did I last order AA batteries" now generate answers from the assistant.

Alexa for Shopping replaces Amazon’s Rufus AI shopping assistant. U.S. and does not require an Alexa account. Availability is ramping up over the coming weeks after May 13, 2026, according to Daniel Rausch, vice president of Alexa and Echo.

At launch, Alexa for Shopping capabilities include setting price alerts, comparing items, and automatically reordering products. The assistant can auto-purchase items based on parameters such as price drops and time since last purchase. It can shop on other websites via the Buy for Me feature, track a full year of price history for a product, and automatically look for products and deals using scheduled actions.

Com and the app. com, across the web, and uses customer knowledge to generate answers. Daniel Rausch told The Verge it is “more deeply integrated, more capable, and available everywhere” compared to Rufus.

Users can access Alexa for Shopping across all Amazon and Alexa devices, creating cross-device continuity. com will have context from that previous conversation. Price alerts set with Alexa for Shopping will appear on Show devices and in the Amazon app.

The assistant can create a shopping guide comparing features, prices, and reviews across Amazon and the web. Rausch described an example in which a query for the best headphones for travel prompts Alexa to sort results by travel features, build product comparisons, and incorporate AI-generated overviews drawn from customer reviews.

A new fully integrated visual shopping experience is now available on the Echo Show 15 and 21.

The shopping experience on Echo Show devices now allows both voice commands and touch to adjust Subscribe and Save settings, change payment method, shipping address, and filter products. The new visual shopping experience on Echo Show devices is coming to the Show 8 and Show 11 in the next month after May 13, 2026.

Rausch said the assistant enables a full end-to-end experience from idea to product in hand.

“This type of shopping experience is not a side quest,” he said. ” The Verge reported that Google and OpenAI have rolled out similar chatbot shopping features with mixed success. Rausch believes Alexa Plus is better positioned because it draws on deep integration with Amazon’s own systems and customer data.