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Amazon Alexa, housed in the Echo smart speaker, returns to answer our questions.

One of the most popular guests ever to appear on our weekly GeekWire radio show is Amazon’s Alexa, the voice-enabled virtual assistant inside the Echo smart speaker and a growing number of Alexa-enabled devices from the Seattle-based e-commerce giant.

That was in early 2015, and so much has changed for Alexa and Echo since then that we decided it was time to catch up again.

GeekWire contributor Frank Catalano with Amazon Echo, recording this week's show.
GeekWire contributor Frank Catalano with Amazon Echo, recording this week’s show.

Alexa returns to the show this week along with GeekWire contributor Frank Catalano, our resident Echo user. After we recorded this episode, Frank reviewed the new Echo Dot, a shorter version of the Echo with the bonus of line-out audio, which allows the device to hook up to stereo systems including Sonos devices.

Previously: Paul Allen’s artificial intelligence guru on the future of robots and humanity

The original Amazon Echo has turned out to be a surprise hit, with one research firm estimating today that the company has sold 3 million units to date.

In addition to talking about the new Amazon devices, we demonstrate new features including Alexa Skills, capabilities that can be added by third-party developers; and play some of the new games that have been added to the device. And ultimately we stump Alexa with our tough questions.

Listen to the show below, or download the MP3 here.

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