Tech Guide #697 - Amazon's Delivering the Future announcements - new robotics, Alexa+ coming to Australia this year
Amazon is accelerating its global rollout of AI-powered Alexa Plus to Australia, bringing a smarter, more conversational assistant to Australian homes in 2026—months ahead of earlier expectations. This isn’t just a voice upgrade; it’s a full shift toward ambient intelligence, where Alexa learns context, remembers preferences, and acts on your behalf through partnerships with local services like restaurant booking and appliance repair. The announcement came from Amazon’s Delivering the Future event in London, where the company unveiled next-gen robotics like Proteus, which now communicate in plain language and autonomously transport shelves in fulfillment centers, dramatically speeding up delivery times. Meanwhile, Amazon is also deploying a new fleet of electric delivery vehicles—including human-powered push carts, electric mopeds, and e-cargo bikes—designed to navigate dense urban areas and remote regions where vans can’t go. These innovations, combined with the upcoming Amazon Leo satellite internet service (set to launch in southern Australia first), signal a bold push to dominate last-mile delivery and connectivity across the country. For Australians, this means faster deliveries, smarter home assistants, and potentially satellite-powered mobile messaging—especially critical in remote areas where cellular coverage is nonexistent.
Alexa Plus will launch in Australia in 2026—months earlier than previously expected—offering a conversational, context-aware assistant that learns from user habits.
Amazon’s new Proteus robots now understand plain-language commands and autonomously transport shelves in fulfillment centers, cutting delivery times to under 8 hours.
New electric delivery vehicles—including e-cargo bikes and push carts—will be used in dense urban and remote areas where vans can’t access.
Amazon Leo satellite internet will launch in southern Australia first, with speeds up to 400 Mbps and gigabit options for businesses.
Telstra’s satellite-to-mobile messaging service has grown from 2.7M to 7.7M users in one year, enabling text messages in areas with zero cellular coverage.
…and 3 more takeaways available in PodZeus
Welcome to Tech Guide #697
Stephen Fennec introduces the episode, highlighting key topics including Amazon’s Delivering the Future event in London, new robotics, Alexa Plus for Australia, the Aura Ring 5, Apple’s App Store milestones, and Telstra’s satellite messaging anniversary.
Amazon’s Next-Gen Proteus Robotics
“Now, how the shelf comes to them? Sitting on top of Proteus. Proteus, it looks like an oversized robot vacuum. That's the best I can describe it.”
Amazon Leo Satellite Internet for Australia
“They're going to have different plans for slower speeds and then... You get, I think 400 to 500 would be the mid-speed. And then I think for businesses and stuff, they can access a gigabit per second through the satellite service as well.”
New Electric Delivery Vehicles
“The moped has a top speed of up to 45 kilometres an hour, has a weatherproof roof and rear view camera as well.”
Alexa Plus Launches in Australia in 2026
“Australia, we're excited that Australians are going to be able to check out Alexa Plus in 2026. So Aussies are going to be able to try this new more conversational Alexa.”
“than 1 .4 trillion, with a T, trillion US dollars has been exchanged in developer transactions in 2025 alone. Convert that to Aussie dollars, you're looking at $2 trillion.”
“Australia, we're excited that Australians are going to be able to check out Alexa Plus in 2026. So Aussies are going to be able to try this new more conversational Alexa.”
“My son Aaron did a two -year trip around Australia and he went everywhere. And there were parts of his journey, his trip, where he would tell my wife and I, I said, look, you won't hear from me for two weeks.”
Host
Guest
Amazon
organization
Stephen Fennec
person
Trevor Wood
person
Aura Ring 5
product
Telstra
organization
Proteus
product
Apple
organization
Amazon Leo
product
Netgear
organization
Norton
organization
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