Chinese e-commerce colossus Alibaba has taken its first venture into developing artificial intelligence home devices by launching its voice assistant speaker, which has drawn comparisons to Amazon's 'Echo'.

Apple's strategy in the 'smart home' race is being threatened by the continued success of Amazon. In less than twelve months, Amazon has developed the hugely successful Echo speaker system and the Alexa voice-controlled digital assistant. That has ensured Amazon as a major player in the battle for primacy in the connected household sector.

Amazon has announced details about developing a new smart home device aimed at fending off competition from market competitors Google and Apple. The world's largest online retailer is planning to capitalize even further on the surprising success of its voice-controlled home gadgets by introducing a new premium Echo-like speaker to the marketplace.