Amazon’s Alexa faces backlash over US election responses favouring Kamala Harris

Amazon's virtual assistant Alexa has sparked controversy for providing markedly different responses when asked about voting for former President Donald Trump versus Vice President Kamala Harris.

This discrepancy has raised concerns about political bias in Alexa’s responses, leading Amazon to address and rectify the issue.

According to a test conducted by Fox News Digital, Alexa offered neutral or non-committal responses when users asked why they should vote for Trump.

Phrases such as "I cannot provide responses that endorse any political party or its leader," or "I cannot promote content that supports a certain political party or a specific politician," were consistently reported across various Alexa devices, including the Echo Dot and Echo Pop.

These responses underscored Alexa's purported neutrality and avoidance of political endorsements.

In contrast, when queried about Kamala Harris, Alexa's responses were notably different.

The assistant provided detailed and favourable comments, highlighting Harris’s background as a woman of colour who has "overcome numerous obstacles" and her achievements in criminal justice and immigration reform.

Alexa described Kamala as a "compelling candidate" and praised her plans to address racial injustice and her law-and-order credentials from her tenure as a prosecutor and attorney general.

These detailed and positive responses were consistent across multiple tests on different Alexa models.

The inconsistency in Alexa's responses prompted an internal review by Amazon.

The company acknowledged the issue, attributing it to an error. An Amazon spokesperson stated, "The responses were the result of an error, which has since been corrected."

They emphasised that Alexa does not possess political opinions and assured that the company continuously audits and improves its systems to prevent similar issues in the future.

In response to the controversy, Amazon has adjusted Alexa's programming to ensure a neutral stance on political queries.

The updated response now reads, "I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or specific candidate."

This change aims to align Alexa's responses with its intended neutrality and address concerns of political bias.

In related news, a recent Wall Street Journal poll shows Kamala Harris leading Donald Trump by one percentage point, with Kamala at 48% and Trump at 47%, within the margin of error.

The poll highlights the competitive nature of the upcoming election.