AAPL Apple Inc

By Sebastian Herrera 

Amazon.com Inc. is bringing its Alexa virtual assistant to wearable products.

The e-commerce giant on Wednesday unveiled earbuds, glasses and a finger ring that will all have its virtual assistant built into them. Amazon announced the products during a press event in Seattle, where executives also introduced new Echo devices, including a high-end speaker and motion sensor, and updates across its portfolio.

With its new earbuds, named Echo Buds and costing $129, Amazon is undercutting rivals such as Apple Inc., which has controlled the market with its higher priced AirPods, which cost $159. Apple's AirPods have 53% of the global earbud market share, according to Counterpoint Research. Apple is expected to sell 40 million AirPods in its current fiscal year, according to UBS.

"Amazon's failure has been around mobile, and this is a chance for them to fix it," analyst Gene Munster from Loup Ventures said. "This is a textbook opportunity for them because it's at Apple's expense. These companies need big levers to go after."

Amazon has sought to put Alexa further into people's lives since it introduced the device in 2014.

Last year, it began offering an Alexa-enabled computer chip that could be inserted into microwaves, coffee machines and other products made by electronics companies. Amazon has also signed up Toyota, Lexus and other car makers to feature Alexa in their new vehicles. Alexa is featured in products such as iHome mirrors and monitoring systems made by security company SimpliSafe. Amazon also recently started offering an Echo product for cars for select customers.

Amazon is estimated to sell 42 million Echo devices this year, commanding 58% of the smart speaker market, Loup Ventures said in June, which also predicts that sales of Google's Nest device will surpass Amazon's Echo in 2023.

Amazon also introduced Echo Frames, eyeglasses that the company said will feature microphones and speakers to communicate with Alexa. In addition, Amazon is also launching an Alexa-enabled ring named "Echo Loop." Both products are only available through invite-only.

The latest product reveal also shows how Amazon is waging its battle to place so-called smart products into consumers' homes. Amazon's new Studio smart-speaker would go head-to-head with the Google Home Max, the Apple HomePod and Sonos One, and Amazon said its latest offering would carry a competitive price tag of $199.99, a discount to offerings from Apple and Google. The Sonos device currently can be used with Alexa or Google's voice assistant.

The company also showed refreshed versions of its products currently on the market. The new Echo Dot will feature a digital clock on the face and the Echo Show 8 has a camera shutter and 8-inch display.

The event comes one day after Amazon said it was working with more than 30 companies to allow multiple digital assistants to be used from one device. The group, which includes Microsoft Corp., Salesforce.com Inc., Intel Corp., Qualcomm Inc., and Bose Corp., said it wants to provide customers flexibility through multiple, interoperable voice services. Absent from the group are Apple and Alphabet Inc.'s Google, which have a stranglehold over virtual assistants on smartphones.

Write to Sebastian Herrera at Sebastian.Herrera@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 25, 2019 15:59 ET (19:59 GMT)

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