Smart Speaker Please and Thank you

Amazon's Alexa encourages children to be more polite by saying 'please' and 'thank you.'

16:59 01 May 2018

Amazon’s Alexa has a new feature that encourages children to become more polite. Called Magic Word, it encourages children to say “please” and “thank you” when using voice commands.

 

So, for example, if the child asks: “Can you play my favourite music?”, Alexa will add to its response: “Thanks for asking so nicely.” Meanwhile, if the child says: “Thank you,” it will prompt one of several follow-ups, including “no worries” and “you’re welcome.”

 

The feature was introduced after a research found that youngsters that grew up accustomed to barking orders at virtual assistants might become aggressive in later dealings with humans.

 

Research director Simon Leggett has welcomed that move saying that it “is a very positive development,"

 

"We had noticed that practically none of the children that we had talked to said they ever used the words 'please' or 'thank you' when talking to their devices.

 

"Younger children will enjoy having the added interactivity, but older children may be less likely to use it as they will be more aware it's a robot at the other end."