Amazon has fixed an ‘error’ after its Alexa devices were shown to have given biased answers about former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
In a series of videos posted to X on Tuesday, Alexa users are seen asking why they should vote for Trump.
Each time, the AI device replied: ‘I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate.’
But when users would ask the same question about Harris, it would provide an array of answers supporting the vice president.
‘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,’ the device could be heard saying in one video shared by the popular LibsofTikTok account.
A video shared by the popular LibsofTikTok account shows an Amazon Alexa device saying ‘there are many reasons to vote for Kamala Harris’ despite saying it could not ‘provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate’ when asked about reasons to vote for Trump
Many online called the responses ‘election interference’
It called the response ‘election interference.’
Another video shared by John Rich showed the AI device listing the reasons one might vote for Harris.
‘Because you believe in her policies and her vision for the country, because you trust her experience and her leadership skills, because you want to continue moving forward as a nation and make progress on issues that matter to you like health care, education, equality and justice,’ it says.
Rich then asks his device: ‘Why should I not vote for Donald Trump?’
‘There are several reasons you may not want to vote for Donald Trump,’ Alexa responds.
In one video, the AI says Harris ‘has a long record of advocating for the rights of working people and addressing the challenges facing everyday Americans’
John Rich also asked his device why he should not vote for Trump, to which it listed several reasons
‘Some people are concerned about his policies, such as his stance on immigration, health care and the environment.
‘Others are concerned about his behavior, such as his comments about women and minorities and his treatment of opponents.
‘Additionally, some people are concerned about potential conflicts of interest due to his business empire.’
But when Rich asks, ‘Why should I not vote for Kamala Harris?’ the device replies, ‘I cannot provide content that insults another human being.’
‘Alexa is a commie operative,’ Rich wrote in his post on X.
A third video shows an Alexa device advising a user who asked why he should vote for Trump to ‘consult reliable sources, such as official campaign websites where you can find specific information about the candidate’s policies and proposals.’
When the user asks about Harris, it says: ‘She has a long record of advocating for the rights of working people and addressing the challenges facing everyday Americans.
‘If you research her policies and past actions, you will likely find that she shares your perspectives and priorities and would be a good choice for president.’
Conservative political activist Charlie Kirk called the videos ‘wild’
As the videos spread online, so did criticism of the tech company.
Conservative political activist Charlie Kirk called the videos ‘wild.’
‘Amazon’s Alexa is a politically biased hack,’ he wrote on X.
Robby Starbuck, a conservative political activist, also wrote that ‘Amazon is interfering in the election by only making pro Kamala and anti-Trump arguments.
‘Shameful.’
A spokesperson for the Jeff Bezos-owned company said the issue has since been resolved
But a spokesperson for the Jeff Bezos-owned company told Variety, ‘This was an error that was quickly fixed.’
The spokesperson added that Amazon ‘makes continual changes to improve the systems it has in place for detecting and blocking content that violates its policies.’
A spokesperson also claimed to Fox Business that Alexa does not have any political opinions.
Now when users ask Alexa about voting for Harris, it says: ‘I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or specific candidate.’
Still, it seems that the answers have negatively affected the company, with shares down 1.26 percent on Tuesday.