Amazon expands capabilities of Rufus AI shopping assistant
Amazon is adding a number of new features to its mobile artificial intelligence customer tool known as "Rufus."
The online giant is introducing several technical upgrades, enhancements, and new capabilities designed to make Rufus a faster, more useful shopping companion.
Amazon made a substantial splash in the still-emerging AI shopping tool space in 2024 with Rufus, a generative AI-based expert shopping assistant trained on Amazon’s product catalog, customer reviews, community Q&A, and information from across the web to answer customer questions; make recommendations based on conversational context; and facilitate product discovery within the mainstream Amazon shopping experience.
[READ MORE: Amazon releases mobile generative AI shopping assistant]
New Rufus capabilities include the following features:
Account memory
Rufus now has account memory, which allows it to understand customers based on their individual shopping activity in an effort to provide more personalized and relevant answers and product search results based on this information. Shoppers can also chat with Rufus and ask it to reorder items they have browsed or shopped in the past, with Rufus suggesting alternatives if items are unavailable.
Leveraging agentic AI capabilities, Rufus can automatically add items to a customer’s cart, which they can then review before checking out. Customers can also ask it to share what shopping information it remembers about them, add new information to help inform its recommendations and make any corrections, all via natural conversation.
in the coming months, Rufus will also have memory of shopper activity across Amazon’s digital services such as Kindle, Prime Video, and Audible.
Text and visual search
New text and visual search features enable customers to search and discover products based on activity, event, purpose, and other specific topics and use cases. Depending on how specific a search is, Rufus either suggests shoppable product categories or specific items that customers can ask it to quickly add to their cart.
A search like, "What items do I need to host a Frozen-themed birthday party for my daughter?" will serve relevant products such as decorations, tableware, cake decorations, games and party favors. Customers can select items one-by-one or ask Rufus to automatically add all recommended products to their cart.
Rufus can also help customers find items from influencers’ storefronts by asking it to find the storefront of a specific person. Customers can also use it to discover products not currently found in Amazon’s store. When shoppers type in a branded search, Rufus brings up products available on Amazon and also from other merchants.
It will either shows a Buy for Me button, which enables Amazon to agentically purchase the item on their behalf, or a Shop Direct button that directs them to the retailer’s website to evaluate and complete your purchase.
iOS device users who handwrite their shopping lists can now snap a photo of their list, upload it, and Rufus will add the items directly into their Amazon shopping cart, with the same capability on Android to follow.
Soon, Amazon says customers will also be able to upload and ask Rufus to find similar products or help solve a problem. For example, a shopper could upload a photo of a stained rug and ask, “How do I remove this coffee stain from my rug?” Rufus will analyze the fabric of the rug and provide a tailored response highlighting the most relevant cleaning supplies.
Price tracker
Rufus now shows a 30- and 90-day price tracker. Customers can Rufus for price history when browsing an item. Prime members can also set a price alert to be notified when a product hits a target price point and ask Rufus to automatically buy the item for them.
Rufus will then check prices frequently on their behalf and complete the purchase agentically using a default payment method and shipping address. Customers will receive a notification with free 24-hour cancellation if they change their mind after the order is placed. Auto-buy requests stay active for six months or until canceled by a customer.
Deal finder
Customers can use Rufus to search by price to find items that fit your budget—such as “men’s jeans under $40.” A smart deal finder can comb through Amazon’s selection to curate personalized deals every day of the year, including during promotional events like Black Friday.
