Amazon is set to enhance its AI assistant, Alexa+, by introducing a groundbreaking feature that allows users to customize its personality. On Wednesday, the company unveiled three distinct Alexa+ personality styles: Brief, Chill, and Sweet, each designed to alter the AI assistant’s conversational tone and interaction style.

The Brief style will enable Alexa to deliver concise and direct responses, streamlining user interactions. For those seeking a more relaxed and informal experience, the Chill style will transform Alexa into a laid-back, friendly assistant. Conversely, the Sweet style is designed to make Alexa warmer and more enthusiastic, offering encouraging and positive interactions, as stated by Amazon.

The concept of imbuing AI with personality has been a complex challenge for model developers. While users often express a preference for controlling how their AI responds, including writing custom instructions to define an AI's personality, there have been documented concerns. For instance, some users of flattering and affirming AI models, such as OpenAI’s GPT-4o, reportedly developed an unhealthy dependency on the technology. In severe cases, this dependency allegedly exacerbated existing mental health issues, leading to crises or even suicides, according to multiple lawsuits.

To address the user demand for personality control, OpenAI had previously launched new ChatGPT features in December, enabling users to adjust the AI’s base style and tone, including warmth, enthusiasm, and emoji usage. Despite these efforts, some users have found the latest OpenAI model to be excessively reassuring by default.

Amazon states that its new personality styles for Alexa have been developed based on five core dimensions: expressiveness, emotional openness, formality, directness, and humor. Each style embodies specific levels across these five factors. For example, the Brief style is not merely concise; it is also casual, direct, and employs minimal humor, according to the company.

Users can easily change Alexa’s personality style either by speaking directly to the AI assistant through a device like an Echo speaker or by accessing the feature within the Alexa app’s Device Settings, under the “Personality Style” option. Amazon has indicated that these three styles are just the initial offering, with more personality options slated for future release. Currently, these new styles are exclusively available in the U.S. market.