There are no firm details on what Amazon’s Robot looks like or what purpose it will serve, but Bloomberg suggests it could be a sort of “mobile Alexa” — following users around their house to places where they can’t speak directly to an Echo speaker.

Prototype robots built by Amazon Reportedly have computer vision software and cameras for navigation, and the company is said to be planning to seed devices in employees’ homes by the end of the year.

From such scant details, it’s difficult to know exactly what Amazon is planning, but it’s safe to say that a home robot in this case does not mean some sort of “robot butler able to perform a variety of household chores.” The technology needed for this sort of device just doesn’t exist yet in the commercial sphere (although companies like Boston Dynamics are working on it ).

Plenty of these have been unveiled in recent years, including LG’s Hub bot , Mayfield Robotics’ Kuri , and the Pixar-like Jibo .

These devices are intended to act as a central point of contact for users’ smart home and as personal companions.

They let users control Wi-Fi-connected devices, perform tasks like setting timers and searching the web, and have a greater number of interactive games for younger children.

Reviews of these “robots” stress that they promise more than they deliver , and indeed, Amazon’s Echo devices already offer the same functionality with less hype.