E-commerce giant Amazon has launched a new wake word for the Amazon Echo devices in the UK.
The company added "Ziggy" as the fifth wake word option for the device in addition to "Amazon," "Alexa," "Computer," and "Echo."
Amazon Adds Ziggy as Wake Word
According to The Independent, Amazon customers can change the wake word of their Echo device through the Alexa app or the Settings screen on Echo Show devices, and all wake word options can be used with either the male or female voice options for the voice command.
Dennis Stansbury, Amazon's UK country manager of Alexa, said that they are constantly looking for ways to offer their customers more choices so they can personalize their experience with the device.
The wake word is important as Alexa devices are designed only to detect the chosen wake word of the user.
Amazon devices detect wake words by identifying acoustic patterns that match the wake word, so much consideration goes into the selection.
Stansbury added that they chose Ziggy because it performed well in testing, and it is "fun and reflects Alexa's wealth of knowledge on everything."
The Ziggy voice was first revealed in July when customers spotted that Amazon had added a more masculine-sounding voice to its speakers, according to Tech Digest.
The voices are not saved across a user's account but instead be linked with each individual Echo, meaning that it will have to be changed across a house.
Echo devices' new wake word was not explicitly linked with the new voice but arrived at the same time. In the app, Amazon calls the two different voices "New" and "Original."
How to Change Wake Word to Ziggy
If you are ready to say goodbye to Alexa and use Ziggy as the new wake word for your Echo devices, you can do it by following these easy steps.
First, open the Alexa smartphone app and go to the devices menu. Choose the Echo device you want to change the wake word of and open the Settings to look for "Wake Word."
You should see a list of wake words that you can choose from, pick "Ziggy," and hit OK.
Turning Alexa Into Automated VA
According to The Verge, adding new wake words is not the only change that Amazon is making for Alexa. The company is also making the virtual assistant easier to use in order to improve user experience.
One of the most notable changes is how Alexa handles Routines, which developers can create and recommend to users instead of requiring you to build your own automation.
Alexa is also starting to coexist with other voice assistants, and Amazon is working to ensure that the most important commands work no Matter what wake word you use.
The company made these announcements during its Alexa Live developer event, in which Amazon announced a slew of other new Alexa features mostly geared toward developers.
The developers can add shopping skills, support Matter and other smart home technology more easily, plug into a simpler setup flow, and understand more about the surroundings.
However, Amazon knows that none of Alexa's new features will work if users can't find them or figure out how to use them.
And instead of building new UIs or clever voice menus, the Alexa team is increasingly leaning into just making the system do the work for the user.
Aaron Rubenson, a VP on the Alexa team, said that they want to make automation and proactivity available to everyone who interacts with Alexa and the devices connected to Alexa.
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Written by Sophie Webster
