Apple91裸聊视频檚 Siri can prattle off the height of celebrities at the drop of a hat. Amazon91裸聊视频檚 Alexa can order a fresh batch of toilet paper to your door. Google91裸聊视频檚 Assistant can help tune your guitar, while Microsoft91裸聊视频檚 Cortana does impressions on request.

Just say the word, and these digital assistants will respond to your queries with synthetic pep and nary a hint of complaint. But ask any of the devices about their gender and they seem to demur.

Pose the question to Siri, Cortana or Assistant, and each will insist they transcend such human constructs. Alexa replies, 91裸聊视频淚91裸聊视频檓 female in character.91裸聊视频�

But all of these artificially intelligent aides will answer in a woman91裸聊视频檚 voice, at least according to their default settings for Canadian users.

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Critics argue this chorus of fembots reinforces stereotypes about women being servile, while members of the tech industry insist they91裸聊视频檙e simply catering to consumers.

Jodie Wallis, managing director of consulting firm Accenture91裸聊视频檚 Canadian AI department, says there91裸聊视频檚 truth to both sides of the debate 91裸聊视频� sexist attitudes may be at play, but developers shouldn91裸聊视频檛 be held responsible for society91裸聊视频檚 views.

91裸聊视频淚t absolutely reinforces stereotypes, but it91裸聊视频檚 reinforcing those stereotypes based on research done on what we respond well to,91裸聊视频� said Wallis.

A Microsoft spokeswoman said the company thought 91裸聊视频渓ong and hard91裸聊视频� about gender and did extensive research about voice in crafting Cortana91裸聊视频檚 91裸聊视频減ersonality.91裸聊视频�

Microsoft concluded there were 91裸聊视频渂enefits and trade-offs to either gender-oriented position,91裸聊视频� but found there is a 91裸聊视频渃ertain warmth91裸聊视频� to the female voice that91裸聊视频檚 associated with helpfulness 91裸聊视频� a quality the company wanted in its product, according the spokeswoman.

Representatives for Amazon and Google did not respond to email inquiries about how gender factored into product development, while an Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.

Researchers at Indiana University found both men and women said they preferred female computerized voices, which they rated as 91裸聊视频渨armer91裸聊视频� than male machine-generated speech, according to a 2011 study.

But late co-author Clifford Nass suggested in the 2005 book 91裸聊视频淲ired for Speech91裸聊视频� that these gender-based preferences can change depending on a machine91裸聊视频檚 function. Male voice interfaces are more likely to command authority, he wrote, while their female counterparts tend to be perceived as more sensitive.

While Alexa and Cortana only offer female voices, male options were added to Assistant and Siri after their initial rollouts. For some languages and dialects, Siri91裸聊视频檚 voice defaults to male, including Arabic, British English and French.

Ramona Pringle, a Ryerson University professor who studies the relationship between humans and technology, acknowledged these developments seem promising, but said if companies are passing the buck onto their customers, then they should be able to select the voice during setup.

91裸聊视频淭he tech industry often does put the onus back on users, whereas it91裸聊视频檚 not up to an individual user to bring about this kind of change,91裸聊视频� said Pringle. 91裸聊视频淭he way that we perpetuate any stereotype is by saying, 91裸聊视频楾hat91裸聊视频檚 what people expect.91裸聊视频�91裸聊视频�

Pringle said there91裸聊视频檚 a 91裸聊视频渃lear power dynamic91裸聊视频� between users and digital assistants, with the female-voiced devices being placed in a subservient role, perpetuating stereotypes that women should be 91裸聊视频渄ocile and doing our bidding at our beck and call.91裸聊视频�

This form of digital sexism that may seem innocuous, but could become more insidious as AI develops, Pringle warned.

If we91裸聊视频檙e conditioned to hurl commands or even verbal abuse at female-coded devices, then as robots become more human-like, the risk is women will be dehumanized, she said.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 almost a step backwards, because it changes the way we engage,91裸聊视频� said Pringle.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 very concerning, because there91裸聊视频檚 no reason 91裸聊视频� for (these devices) being gendered the way that they are.91裸聊视频�

Adina Bresge, The Canadian Press

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