Metis, do you know? This is the code name for Amazon’s top secret project to compete with ChatGPT.
While Google and Apple are sharpening their AI weapons, with Google Gemini and Apple Intelligence, Amazon should soon emerge from the shadows with Metis. An ambitious project that could well shake up the world of chatbots.
According to the indiscretions reported by Business Insider, Metis is not yet another voice assistant intended to boost Alexa. No, Amazon’s ambition is much greater: to directly compete with ChatGPT on the web. We are talking here about a service accessible via browser, like Google’s Gemini or Microsoft’s Copilot.
But what really makes Metis interesting is its engine. Powered by the in-house AI model called Olympus, Metis would be a supercharged version of Amazon’s Titan model, already available to the public. Clearly, we are talking about an AI that is potentially more powerful than what Amazon has offered so far.
An AI that sees beyond the end of its training
One of Metis’ strengths, according to leaked information, is its ability to draw information beyond its initial database. Unlike many chatbots that are limited to the data they have been trained on, Metis could access information in real time.
Imagine being able to ask for the current price of a stock or the latest news on a current event, and get an up-to-date answer. This is the promise of Metis. But it also raises questions: how does Metis access this information? What sources are used? On paper, Metis seems to offer the classic features expected of a modern chatbot. Text generation, image analysis, query suggestions… nothing revolutionary at first glance. But the devil is in the details. Image generation is also on the program, although the extent and quality of this functionality is still unknown. Will Amazon catch up with giants like DALL-E or Midjourney?
Metis’ arrival also raises questions about Alexa’s future. If Amazon develops such powerful AI, why not integrate it directly into its voice assistant? Rumors of an “Alexa enhanced by AI” in the form of a subscription take on their full meaning here. Amazon could well use Metis as a test bed before boosting Alexa with these new capabilities.
