Prime Video gets a much-needed UI overhaul with a new content bar and AI recommendations

For all its stacked selection of original content, like Fallout, The Boys and Rings of Power, Prime Video has historically pffered a cluttered, confusing and less-than-intuitive layout — especially compared to rivals like Netflix. That changes today as Amazon begins rolling out a new Prime Video UI that, in the company’s words, brings “clarity and simplicity back to streaming.”

The Prime Video redesign starts with a streamlined navigation bar that should make it easier to find your way around. To the left, the bar includes the general categories Home, Movies, TV Shows, Sports and Live TV. Immediately to the right, the nav bar continues with a dedicated tab for content bundled with your Prime membership, followed by sections for add-on subscriptions like Max, Paramount+, Crunchyroll and others. There’s a separate section to add new subscriptions — from Amazon’s more than 100 options — straight from the bar.

Meanwhile, a new “hero rotator” below the bar drills down to highlight content available within each selected bar section. It looks similar to rival services, which doesn’t sound like a big deal on paper but should be a welcome change for anyone who’s ever futzed around with the confusing old Prime Video UI.

Unsurprisingly, Amazon is adding personalized AI-generated recommendations (“Made for you”) when navigating the bar’s Movies and TV Shows sections. Using the company’s Bedrock AI model, the machine learning recommendations will offer content tips based on your watch history and preferences.

AI will also power new show and movie synopses. Amazon says the change will make browsing their blurbs faster, preventing you from having to scroll around to learn more about a given piece of content.

Finally, Amazon says the UI has new animations, snappier page transitions and zoom effects to make the experience more “frictionless.” On living room devices, video content will auto-play on the hero rotator as you browse around (much like Netflix and other competitors). If you head to the Live TV tab, recommended stations will also play on their own, continuing until you pick something to give your full attention.

The UI update begins rolling out on Tuesday. You can read more in Amazon’s announcement post.