Amazon's Alexa celebrates Black History Month

By Alix Martichoux, San Francisco Chronicle

Updated 5:49 pm, Monday, February 6, 2017

Amazon is celebrating Black History Month in a new way this February. If you want to know how, just ask Alexa.

The Amazon Echo is now equipped with the ability to educate users on the accomplishments of black men and women in America. 

To try it yourself, just tell the voice-enabled speaker, “Alexa, tell black history facts.” The device will respond with one of 100 or so facts about influential people like Condoleezza Rice or A. Philip Randolph. 

Users can also ask questions about specific time periods, like, “Alexa, tell black history facts from the 21st century,” or “tell black history facts that happened in the 1880s.” 

The facts are narrated by Amazon employees, as well as a few notable voices, like Clayton Petrie, one of the first African American Marines to fight in World War II, and Roger Craig, former running back for the San Francisco 49ers. 

Craig voices a number of responses, including one about Martin Luther King, Jr. Sebastian Blissett, the software development engineer behind the new skill, said Craig “jumped at the opportunity” to be involved and even brought his two songs along to participate. “He has a great personality and a passion for promoting black historical achievements,” Blissett said.

Tori Sepand, a recruiting specialist at Amazon, was another voice of Alexa for this special skill. She believes technology like this can be used in a way that keeps the legacies of black leaders alive. “Being a voice in the skill allows me to be a piece of the bridge between technology and our history,” Sepand told SFGATE.

“Several of us in the Black Employee Network at Amazon were passionate about bringing together black history and technology to help share these impactful stories,” Blissett said in an interview.

The Black Employee Network at Amazon partnered with BlackPast.org to develop the skill. Blissett says the company will continue to add to Alexa’s database of facts over time. 

To enable the skill, customers can use the Alexa app or say, “Alexa, enable black history facts.” Amazon says the skill was launched on Feb. 1 in celebration of Black History Month and will continue to be available past the month of February. 

Amazon has also launched a page on Amazon Video that features black films and television shows.