Alibaba is said to be working on an Amazon Echo rival aimed at Chinese market, according to a latest report from The Information. Citing sources familiar to the matter, the publication stated that Alibaba could launch the voice-activated smart speaker sometime this week.
It is expected that similar to Amazon Echo, users in China will be able to shop from Alibaba using the smart speaker. The device will understand Mandarin voice commands and is aimed entirely at domestic consumers who are aware of Alibaba’s online services. Alibaba’s virtual assistant is developed by the company’s China-based AI team.
Alibaba’s smart speaker will not compete directly with Amazon Echo, Google Home and Apple’s HomePod as it is only targeted at the Chinese market as of now.