A new European spot for Amazon's Alexa appears simple at first, but there's a subtle twist to the tale that puts a new spin on digital assistant advertising.

Created by Joint London and directed by Academy's Frederic Planchon, the ad is titled "Morning Ritual" and depicts a young woman waking up on a grey day. She stirs, gets out of bed and immediately asks Alexa what time it is. 

So far, so uneventful—and at this point, you might be idly wondering, "Why doesn't she just check her alarm clock or phone?" or even thinking, "Is this how lazy we're all becoming in the age of Alexa?" She dresses and goes downstairs, greets her pet dog warmly and makes herself a cup of coffee. Taking a sip, she stares out of the window at the rain. Then, she asks Alexa, "What's the weather like right now?"

Now, the story starts to become clear, and the woman then leaves the house, strapping her dog to a harness and donning dark glasses. A logo for blindness charity RNIB also appears on the screen. 

The ad, designed to remind us that Alexa can help with even the simplest of tasks, is airing across the U.K., France, Germany, Italy and Spain.