Since October 2017, Indian users have used Alexa enabled devices to access thousands of voice experiences, called “skills”, built by developers worldwide. Today, Amazon has announced that developers can start building Alexa skills for customers in India using the new Hindi voice model on the Alexa Skills Kit (ASK). Developers will get a head start and will be able to submit skills for certification as Amazon prepares to offer engaging experiences for Alexa users in one of the most spoken languages in the country. Commercial hardware manufacturers who want to develop Alexa Built-in products for Hindi-speaking customers in India can request early access to the invite-only Alexa Voice Service (AVS) developer preview.
Create New Skills for Alexa with the Alexa Skills Kit
Alexa Skills Kit (ASK) is a collection of self-service APIs and tools that make it fast and easy for developers to create new voice-driven capabilities, or skills, for Alexa. Developers don’t need experience with speech recognition or natural language understanding to build a skill—Alexa does all the work to hear, understand, and process the customer’s spoken request so developers don’t have to.
How to Build Alexa Skills for Hindi Speaking Customers
It’s easy to start building voice experiences for Alexa in the new Hindi language model. Before you begin building your skill in Hindi, be sure to select Hindi (IN) as your language model in the Alexa Developer Console. However, if you’re new to the skill building process, check out this detailed walkthrough to get started. To build a skill in the Hindi voice model, get started with the following:
- Try the basic fact skill sample
- Go through a complete, step by step guide to create a new skill in Hindi
- Browse through the technical documentation to understand the nuances in building a skill for the Hindi language model
Add Hindi to Your Existing English (India) Skill and Reach New Customers
If you’re an Alexa developer and want to engage with new Hindi-speaking customers in India, you can update your existing published skill in India for Hindi by following these simple steps.
Attend the Webinar to Start Building Skills in Hindi
Sign up for the first webinar on Hindi skill building scheduled on July 24 at 4 pm IST. Alongside the Technical Evangelist (Sohan Maheshwar) and Solutions Architect (Karthik Ragubathy) you will learn about how to reach new Hindi speaking customers with Alexa skills built using Hindi and ask any questions you may have. Register here
Submit and Win Exclusive Merchandise
Ready to build an Alexa skill using Hindi? Developers in India who have their Hindi-language skill certified for publication in India before July 31 will receive exclusive Early Bird Alexa merchandise. Learn more
Share Feedback and Make the Skill Building Process in Hindi (IN) Better
Join the Slack channel to get connected with your peer developers building for Hindi. If you have any questions or feedback on the HI_IN model, please contact us.
Integrate Alexa into Your Devices with the Alexa Voice Service (AVS)
AVS enables device makers to integrate Alexa directly into their products to bring the convenience of voice interaction to any connected device. AVS provides a suite of resources, including APIs, hardware development kits, software development kits, and documentation. Device makers like Dish TV, Mybox, Sony, boAt and more will soon be able to leverage these resources to launch Alexa built-in products with the Hindi-language model for India. Commercial device makers that wish to add Hindi to their devices can request early access to the invite-only developer preview now through the AVS Developer Portal.
