Amazon is stepping up its artificial intelligence game with the expansion of Rufus, its AI-powered shopping assistant, to more markets in Europe and the Americas. This move marks a significant step forward for the ecommerce giant, which has been working to catch up with its Big Tech peers in the AI sphere.

Rufus, which was first trialed in the US in February, offers a range of features designed to enhance the shopping experience, including product search support, product comparisons, and personalized recommendations. The AI chatbot has been trained on Amazon's vast repository of customer reviews, product catalogs, and other public data, allowing it to respond to natural language queries from shoppers.

To access Rufus, users in the newly added markets - Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain - need to update their Amazon Shopping app to the latest version and tap a dedicated icon at the bottom-right of the screen. This will surface a familiar chatbot-style interface, where users can ask questions like "What are some great gifts for kids under 5?" or "Compare different kinds of coffee makers."

While Amazon acknowledges that Rufus is still an early iteration and may not always get it exactly right, the company is committed to continuously improving the AI models and fine-tuning responses to make the assistant more helpful over time. This expansion is part of Amazon's broader push into generative AI, which has also seen the launch of new tools to help sellers improve their listings and a $230 million commitment to supporting generative AI startups.

As Amazon continues to ramp up its AI capabilities, the implications for the ecommerce landscape are significant. With Rufus, the company is poised to revolutionize the way people shop online, making it easier and more personalized than ever before.