The Next Big Threat to Consumer Brands (Yes, Amazon's Behind It)

Unlike in stores or online, where an array of brands get plenty of exposure, voice-search assistants like Amazon.com Inc.'s AMZN -0.66% Alexa often steer shoppers to a single product, usually selected by an algorithm with no input from the sellers. That isn't a big problem now, as voice searches account for a sliver of purchases. In the next five years, half of searches on the web will be done via voice, estimates Sebastien Szczepaniak, a former Amazon executive who now heads e-commerce for Nestlé SA, NSRGY -1.19% the world's biggest packaged-foods company. Consulting firm Capgemini says voice-assistant users will spend 18% of their total expenses via voice assistants in the next three years, up from 3% currently. "Of all the disruptions that are taking place in all the things technology is bringing into our space, voice is among the most disruptive," said Graeme Pitkethly, chief financial officer of Unilever PLC.