“Alexa, how do I get my kids to stop laughing?” asks a user of Amazon’s voice assistant. “According to an Alexa Answers employee, if it’s convenient, you could punch them in the throat,” the device replies. The woman suppresses a laugh. Alexa continues with the advice: “If they’re writhing in pain and can’t breathe, they’re less likely to laugh,” she adds. The conversation, captured in a TikTok video that went viral, shows the importance of good content moderation systems. And of the catastrophic consequences that errors in this protocol can bring.
The Amazon device’s response comes from Alexa Answers, the company was quick to point out when the video broke. Alexa usually answers its users’ questions with information it searches on Google or that relates to specific applications. Its algorithm is responsible for calibration, which is the best option at all times.
However, there are times when the questions asked are so unusual that Alexa doesn’t know what to say. In these cases, turn to the Alexa Answers feature, a repository of answers provided by the voice assistant user community. “We make it clear to customers when they will receive a response from Alexa Answers, and we have a multi-layered moderation process that includes automation and trained moderators,” say sources at the multinational. “In the rare instances where responses don’t meet the high standards we have set for the Alexa experience, we promptly remove them, as we did on this occasion.” Amazon moved in September “at the time when we knew of its existence,” returned the controversial response, which suggested targeting minors.
The smart speakers Amazon Echo integrated the voice assistant Alexa in 2014 and quickly became a benchmark in the industry. The tool can integrate other devices compatible with your system, such as lights, video surveillance cameras or other home automation elements, to activate them with voice instructions.
How Alexa Answers works
When many users ask Alexa a question that she can’t answer, that question becomes a candidate for Alexa Answers. If selected as valid, it will appear in the list of questions that Alexa users who want to contribute can choose to answer voluntarily.
The answers provided by the user community are checked before being considered valid. “A combination of automated systems, community members, and content moderators from Alexa Answers” is employed.
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