Amazon’s Panos Panay has a complicated response to Fire Phone 2.0 rumors

Source: Android Authority

TL;DR

• Amazon launched its Fire Phone in 2014 to a disastrous response.
• Earlier this year, rumors suggested the company was considering a second swing at building its own phone.
• In a new interview, exec Panos Panay doesn’t outright dismiss the idea of a new Amazon phone, but makes clear it isn’t the immediate priority.

Background

In the early 2010s the smartphone industry was exploding, and brands everywhere were trying to get in on the action. HTC built “Facebook phones” with dedicated buttons for the social media giant, and Amazon attempted its own Fire Phone. That effort quickly proved to be a high‑profile disaster, but earlier this year rumors surfaced that Amazon was thinking about a do‑over (Android Authority article) and was working on a new smartphone project.

Interview with Panos Panay

Panos Panay, Amazon’s head of devices and services, discussed the topic in an interview with The Financial Times (full interview). The conversation covered Amazon’s satellite ambitions, self‑driving robotaxis, and the company’s control over hardware that accesses its ecosystem. While Amazon dominates the connected home with Echo devices, phones remain an obvious gap.

Would you give Amazon another chance at a Fire Phone?

Panay noted that even without owning the hardware, Amazon has been successful at getting millions of users to run its apps on iPhones and Android handsets. When pressed about a potential new Amazon phone, he responded:

“I think your black‑and‑white question is, are you going after a phone? A lot of people want me to say no, but a lot of people want me to say yes, I get it. Here’s my take: it’s not necessarily that we’re going after a phone, no.”

He clarified that a new phone isn’t an end goal in itself. If a phone would help Amazon achieve larger objectives—such as expanding the connected home or supporting retail efforts—the company might consider it, but it’s not a primary focus.

Panay also alluded to the evolving shape of devices, suggesting that phones as we know them today may look very different in ten years, or may no longer be our primary devices:

“There’s no clear path that makes sense. You just said it, there are so many new form factors that are important that need to be focused on. It’s a tricky question. If I black‑and‑white say no, I would say that was accurate. But I also think it’s misleading.”

He hinted that the next Amazon “phone” could be something like smart glasses (Android Authority article on Amazon AR glasses). More than anything, Amazon wants to keep its options open and avoid repeating past mistakes of pushing a mobile device customers didn’t ask for:

“What I won’t ever do again is go to the customer and say, ‘here’s another phone.’ What do you think? There’s no point.”