Amazon is developing an Alexa-based smartphone 10 years after the Fire Phone failure

Amazon is developing a new smartphone—more than a decade after the company discontinued the failed Fire Phone. This time, the device is built around Alexa, the voice AI assistant, though it will not become a standalone operating system. According to Reuters, the project carries the codename Transformer and is being developed within Amazon's ZeroOne division.

The team is led by Jay Alard—a Microsoft veteran who was involved in creating Xbox and the Zune media player. Alard's name in the industry is associated with products that redefined their categories, which explains the unconventional approach to the new device. The team is exploring two conceptual directions at once.

The first is a classic smartphone with enhanced Alexa capabilities. The second is a so-called "dumb phone" in the spirit of the minimalist Light Phone priced at $700: a black-and-white screen, minimal apps, maximum voice control. This reflects a broader industry discussion about whether it is time to rethink the form of a personal device in the age of AI.

The Fire Phone was launched in 2014 and discontinued less than a year later—due to high pricing, a weak ecosystem, and the lack of a clear answer to the question "why?" Amazon wrote off losses of nearly $170 million. Since then, the company has focused on Echo smart speakers and the smart home, turning Alexa into one of the most widespread voice assistants in the world.

The return to smartphones makes sense in the context of the AI device race. Following the success of Rabbit R1 and Humane AI Pin—albeit mixed—major players are seeking the next hardware form factor for AI assistants. Amazon, with millions of Alexa users and a developed Prime infrastructure, has an advantage that startups did not have.

The Transformer is currently in development, with no release date announced. But the very existence of the project suggests that Amazon is not willing to concede the mobile point of contact with users to competitors—especially in light of how Apple is integrating Apple Intelligence into iPhone and Google is pushing Gemini on Android.