Amazon may just take on ChatGPT with Olympus AI: What is it, and how is it any different?

A recent report from the Information claims Amazon is working on its own ChatGPT alternative, dubbed Olympus. So what is Olympus, do we have any sure sign it’s coming, and if so when? Let’s start with the easiest question. Amazon Olympus is reportedly the name of a new large language model (LLM) that would be able to answer questions and provide information using generative AI, just like other similar AI chatbots.

Now let’s take a closer look at how likely Olympus is and how it might differ from other similar generative AI platforms.

Is Amazon Olympus officially happening, or is it all just a rumor?

Amazon has yet to officially confirm or deny whether this new platform will be called Olympus, or exactly what it will be capable of. That said, it made it clear back in September that it wanted to improve Alexa with generative AI by introducing its own large language model. There was even a report earlier this year suggesting Amazon was working on an AI chatbot to assist its customers with shopping, which could be connected.

Putting that all together, it seems Amazon Olympus is a sure thing. The report claims it could be announced as early as AWS Re-Invent on November 27th.

How would Amazon Olympus differ from ChatGPT?

Reportedly, Olympus will be used directly by Amazon as well as aimed at corporate customers, much like enterprise solutions that are offered by Open AI and Microsoft.  It’s less clear if they’ll be publically accessible to users for free in the same way as ChatGPT, however. Even if you can’t interact with it over the web, it’s all but set in stone that you’ll be able to interact with it through Alexa.

It’s too early to say how Amazon’s LLM would differ compared to existing rivals, but we do know it will allegedly be one of the largest models ever built with two trillion parameters — double that of GPT 4. Although this doesn’t necessarily make Olympus more capable, it’s a positive sign.

If Amazon really wants to take on OpenAI it has the money and skill to do it, but it will be no easy battle. If they are going to make a bigger dent in the generative AI space the company will need to aim high and attempt to build something that outshines GPT out of the gate. As we mentioned, Alexa is likely Amazon’s X factor here.

Amazon Olympus will be a significant upgrade to Alexa

According to the report, Amazon Olympus will have several new AI features that directly affect Alexa including the ability for it to hold actual conversations with its users, compose messages, and answer more advanced questions than its current AI model allows. This backs up what Amazon promised in September that it would eventually deliver to Alexa.

Despite wide adoption, Amazon Alexa hasn’t been a resounding success for the company and has actually cost them a lot of money. Amazon has made it clear they aren’t giving up yet, and that means the company has long-term faith in AI assistants even if they haven’t seen any profit from it. Bezos and the company is holding out hope that more powerful generative AI will be enough to catapult Alexa to new heights. Whether Olympus will actually accomplish that? We will have to wait and see.

More competition is a good thing

I am hopeful Amazon really is jumping into this space soon. Although I’d love to see newer players dominate this field over today’s existing tech giants, more competition means more innovation and better choices for consumers. That’s a win for everyone.

For now, we’d say Amazon Olympus is going to happen, though what form or even official name it will take, or how ambitious it will truly be? That’s less certain. We’ll be sure to update this quick explainer as we learn more.

That’s it for this quick guide. While you’re here, be sure to check out our guides to the best AI tools for productivity or the best AI tools for business.

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