Amazon names Aidan Marcuss head of Alexa, Rausch stepping away
Amazon is switching things up in its Alexa division: Daniel Rausch, who's been leading Alexa and Echo for years, will step away from the unit next month and return in another capacity in the devices and services division in 2027.
Taking his place is Aidan Marcuss, the current vice president of Fire TV, advertising and the Amazon appstore, who oversaw the release of a new Fire TV Stick last month.
This leadership change comes right on the heels of Amazon dropping its new premium tablets, which feature Alexa+.
Alexa+ subscription costs $139/year or $20/month
The fresh tablets feature Alexa+ with generative AI that can handle more complex requests, definitely a step up from Amazon's usual budget devices.
Access to Alexa+ isn't free though; it comes with Prime at $139 a year or as a separate service for $20 a month.
Even with all these upgrades, Alexa has struggled to make money since 2014, so these changes are part of Amazon's push to finally turn things around.