Amazon’s virtual assistant is learning a skill that some humans have yet to master — being a better listener.

    The firm has been developing a feature that gives Alexa the ability to distinguish* between users based on their voice.

    The feature would match the person speaking to a voice sample in order to determine the individual’s identity.

    Alexa first debuted in 2014 and is the virtual assistant housed inside Amazon’s Echo speaker and its smaller versions, Dot and Tap.

    This technology can interpret commands for ordering a pie from the user’s favorite pizzeria, pulling up a playlist to set the mood for dinner and telling people how to dress for the weather before leaving the house.

    Besides saving people money, allowing Alexa to distinguish between users would help it to make more personal suggestions when it comes to playing music.

    Echo owners currently have the ability to setup multiple user profiles for one device, but have to say “switch accounts” or use the Alexa app to access their own settings and preferences.

    Although it is not clear when Amazon will add the feature or if it is nothing more than a rumor, Amazon has revealed that Alexa does have a new feature.

    The virtual assistant can now search for and book holidays using just the user’s voice. The feature lets users search through millions of travel options in a split second, developers have claimed. But the skill is still in its first edition and can so far only be used to book Virgin Holidays.

    The user can then pick their preferred destination*, dates, departure airport and number of nights. Alexa will then respond with the final details with an accompanying link to the booking page on the Alexa app.(SD-Agencies)