Alexa, Amazon‘s trusty virtual assistant, found herself in the middle of a rather unexpected scrimmage last week. It all started when a user, Joanne Rodda, asked Alexa about the England-Australia Football World Cup match played on August 16. Alexa replied with utmost certainty that there was no match that day. So Rodda promptly wore her psychiatrist hat and quizzed Alexa on Women’s Super League. The AI-backed service failed yet again. However, Rodda found that Alexa was brimming with information and more about Arsenal’s matches in October. Alexa is sexist, cried Rodda, seemingly not bothered about women’s sports. Incidentally, the Lionesses beat the Matildas 3-1 in that semifinal match.
Amazon, not one to drop the ball when it comes to responding to customer queries, was quick to issue a statement. The company attributed the mishap to a technical glitch and assured that customers, female customers included, should not worry, Alexa’s heart was in the right place, even if her answer was, well, wrong.
However, Alexa’s bad match performance again proves that the smartest of AI systems can fumble spectacularly like a centreback under pressure. And even in this age of AI, the most sophisticated algorithms can have their ‘Monday morning’ moments. As for Alexa, she must be sent back to the grounds for some extra match practice, with the ladies.
