- Amazon on Thursday launched Rufus, a new AI-powered shopping assistant.
- The chatbot is named after the Welsh Corgis owned by two of the company's early employees.
- Rufus was Amazon's “shortest volunteer worker” and “launched” some of the company's first web pages.
Amazon named its latest AI chatbot after the dogs of two of its earliest employees.
The e-commerce giant New shopping assistant powered by AI The chatbot, dubbed Rufus on Thursday, shared a name with Amazon's first four-legged “employee.”
Rufus was owned by Susan Benson, a former Amazon editor-in-chief, and her husband Richard, who was an engineer. Corgis were apparently a staple in the office in the early days of the company.
a Notes on Amazon's website describes him as “the shortest volunteer worker,” and employees even launched Amazon's early web pages by clicking on his paws with a computer mouse.
Amazon Named one of the Seattle headquarters buildings Named after a corgi who passed away in 2009. There are pictures of him all over the office.Some hailed Rufus as Amazon's “official switch thrower.”
according to brad stone books Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, also known as The Everything Store, once described him as a “very sweet dog” but “not bold.”
It remains to be seen whether the AI version of Rufus will be as well-liked.
Shopping assistants are designed to answer product questions, make product recommendations, and improve your searches by providing a more personalized chatbot-style interface.
Business Insider previously reported that Amazon is considering overhauling its search experience with AI-powered features. Code name: “Project Nile” Senior executives, including CEO Andy Jassy, are supporting this effort.
Rufus is still in beta testing, but could be rolled out within the next few weeks.
Amazon did not immediately respond to BI's request for comment outside of normal business hours.
