Your Alexa-enabled lights and thermostats can now be controlled by Alexa herself

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The next level of Alexa’s Hunches ability is now available, with Alexa able to act on Hunches without user input. The update was announced back in September of last year, letting Alexa do things like turn off your smart lights by herself.

Until now, Hunches worked by Alexa asking the user if it wanted to do a task related to their smart home devices. For example, if they went out without changing the thermostat, Alexa would ask if they wanted to lower the temperature while they were out of their home.

Now, Alexa can act on those Hunches without having to ask for permission, controlling a wide variety of smart devices like lights, thermostats, robotic vacuums, and more. Hunches are enabled by default when you install the Alexa app, so in theory, managing your smart home is easier than ever before.

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May 8, 2025

Open the Alexa app

Tap on the More option at the bottom of the screen

Tap on Settings, then scroll down til you see Hunches and tap on it

Set up automatic actions if you want, or tap on the Gear icon to get to the Settings menu so you can turn Hunches off

Currently, the automatic actions based on Hunches are limited to smart locks, lights, plugs, and thermostats.

You might see prompts for adding other devices in the near future, so there’s still hope for your connected coffee maker to automatically brew you a pot before you wake up.

Have any thoughts on this? Would you use this feature? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

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Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.