Amazon hit with $46.7 million damages in voice-assistant patent battle over Alexa
A US jury found the tech giant violated patents related to speech recognition and natural language processing. The case, brought by VB Assets, alleged Amazon copied innovations from VoiceBox Technologies.
A jury in Delaware federal court determined that Amazon’s virtual assistant, Alexa, violates speech recognition and natural language processing patents, and was ordered to pay $46.7 million in damages
The verdict follows allegations by tech company VB Assets, asserting that Amazon copied innovations from VoiceBox Technologies, its predecessor, which developed voice-control software for various companies, including Toyota, Chrysler, Dodge, TomTom, and Magellan.
Amazon and VB representatives have not yet provided comments on the jury’s decision. The lawsuit, filed in 2019, claimed that Amazon began hiring VoiceBox employees in 2016 and that discussions about integrating VoiceBox’s patented technology into Amazon products took place in 2011 and 2017.
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