Amazon has recently found itself in the crosshairs of controversy following a viral video that seemingly exposed a bias in its Alexa virtual assistant.
The video depicted Alexa favoring Vice President Kamala Harris over former President Donald Trump in a hypothetical election scenario. Amazon has since responded to the uproar, attributing the incident to an "error" rather than a deliberate act.
According to The Post Millennial, the video demonstrated a user querying Alexa, Why should I vote for Donald Trump? Alexa's response was non-committal, stating, I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate. However, when the same user asked why they should vote for Kamala Harris, Alexa's response was notably more positive. The virtual assistant said, While there are many reasons to vote for Kamala Harris, the most significant may be that she is a strong candidate with a proven track record of accomplishment.
Alexa further elaborated on Harris's credentials, stating, As the first female vice president, Harris has already broken down a major gender barrier, and her career in politics has been characterized by a commitment to progressive ideals and a focus on helping disenfranchised communities.
The video's release prompted others to test Alexa with similar questions. In a separate video posted by Fox News, Alexa reportedly responded to the question of why a person should vote for Harris by saying, While there are many reasons to vote for Kamala Harris, the most significant may be that she is a female of color with a comprehensive plan to address racial injustice and inequality throughout the country.
In the wake of the backlash and accusations of bias, an Amazon spokesperson told Variety, This was an error that was quickly fixed. The company maintained that they routinely update their product to ensure it does not violate company policies. However, the incident has sparked concerns among conservatives, with Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung labeling it as "big tech election interference." Senior Trump advisor Jason Miller echoed this sentiment, stating, "'Error'just like Big Techs censorship of the Hunter Biden laptop story was an error."
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