Amazon's AI Chatbot Rufus Now Available to All Customers in the US

Amazon has officially launched its AI shopping assistant, “Rufus,” for all U.S. customers using the Amazon mobile app. This innovative assistant, found at the bottom right of the app’s main navigation bar, is designed to enhance the shopping experience by helping users find products, compare options, and receive tailored recommendations.

Previously available in beta to a select group of users in the U.S., Rufus has now been expanded to all shoppers following extensive testing on “tens of millions of questions.” The AI chatbot was initially unveiled in February and has been trained on Amazon’s extensive product catalog, customer reviews, community Q&As, and other publicly available information from across the web—though Amazon has not detailed which specific websites contributed to the development of Rufus.

Powered by a specialized internal large language model (LLM) tailored for commerce, Rufus allows customers to inquire about various aspects of products. Users can ask questions such as what factors to consider when buying headphones, how to detail their car, what clean beauty products are available, or the essentials needed for golfing in cold weather. Additionally, customers can engage in a conversation with Rufus by expressing their intentions, like, “I want to start an indoor garden,” prompting the assistant to suggest relevant items to help achieve that goal.

During its testing phase, customers frequently posed questions to Rufus and interacted with related suggestions displayed in the chat window. For example, if a user inquired about the material of a specific backpack, they might also click on a follow-up question, “What do customers say?” to gain further insights.

Recognizing context beyond product specifics, Rufus can also provide information relevant to its users’ locations. For instance, when a customer asked about pool umbrellas for Florida, Rufus offered details about the state's weather and humidity conditions.

In addition to facilitating product comparisons, Rufus keeps users informed about trends in fashion and new tech releases. Customers can easily ask about the latest product models or the most popular styles. Previously, beta users benefited from Rufus's help tracking past orders and receiving updates on upcoming deliveries.

To use Rufus, U.S. customers must ensure they have the latest version of the Amazon Shopping app. The assistant can be easily accessed via the designated icon featuring chat bubbles and a sparkle at the bottom navigation bar.

While initial feedback indicates that Rufus serves as a competent shopping companion, there are areas for improvement. The assistant occasionally falters in providing accurate answers for non-shopping inquiries and is constrained to Amazon's product catalog, which may impact the quality of recommendations at times. Amazon has committed to ongoing enhancements for Rufus as it evolves.

In summary, Amazon's chatbot, Rufus, shows potential as a shopping assistant but has room for growth.