Amazon shuffles Alexa leadership following high-end tablet release

Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 9 : Amazon on Friday confirmed it was shuffling leadership in its Alexa division, a day after the company announced its first tablet computers featuring the voice assistant.

Daniel Rausch, a 17-year Amazon veteran who has served as vice president of Alexa and Echo for over three years, is stepping away from the unit next month, Amazon said in response to a Reuters inquiry.

Rausch, who has served as the face of Alexa at events and global launches, will return in another capacity in the devices and services division in 2027.

In his place, Amazon will install Aidan Marcuss, currently the vice president of Fire TV, advertising and the Amazon appstore. Marcuss joined Amazon from Microsoft in early 2025. He oversaw the release of a new Fire TV stick last month, which has garnered mixed reviews.

CNA Games

Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time

Buzzword
Create words using the given letters

Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser

Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge

Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less

Kevin Keith, a product and marketing vice president, will keep that role but also take on Marcuss' responsibilities for the time being, Amazon said. The company declined to provide additional detail about the changes.

Alexa has been a consistent money-loser for Amazon since its release in 2014.

Amazon spent several years developing a new version of the voice assistant offering generative AI that can respond to longer prompts. The service is featured in the new Alexa Tablets announced on Thursday that Amazon has priced as a high-end product compared with prior Fire tablets that were inexpensive.

Alexa+, as the latest version is known, is included in the $139-per-year Prime membership or for $20 monthly as a standalone service. 

Newsletter

Week in Review

Subscribe to our Chief Editor’s Week in Review

Our chief editor shares analysis and picks of the week's biggest news every Saturday.

Sign up for our newsletters

Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox

Subscribe here

Get the CNA app

Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories

Download here

Get WhatsApp alerts

Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app

Join here