I Am Alexa Alliance

@JaneFriedman Related: Amazon turned our first name into the sound activating *half a billion* tech devices. Now it's a problem for anyone to address (or even mention) us in many places. Our repeated pleas for the company to rectify this situation have been ignored. Nothing new here.

A brief update: After going back a few times with Amazon on this issue, I was notified the books would not be removed based on the information I provided. Since I do not own copyright in these AI works and since my name is not trademarked, I'm not sure what can be done.

We're halfway funded! Here's your chance to help us make a film about the harm Amazon is causing people named Alexa. Thank you! #RebrandAlexa kickstarter.com/projects/alexa…

Our Kickstarter is now live! If you've been aware of our cause, but unsure of how to help, here's your chance to make a difference. Thank you!🙏 #RebrandAlexa #AiEthics kickstarter.com/projects/alexa…

We're excited to announce our Kickstarter campaign, launching Monday, to help us make a short film illustrating the harms caused when corporations use real names to activate their tech products. kickstarter.com/projects/alexa…

I was at the grocery store and heard someone yell, "Alexa, where's the cart?" I laughed to myself when I realized he was talking to a real person.

Can't believe we live in a world where some would rather see an AI system as human before acknowledging the humanity of the marginalized actual people around them.

@WIRED People named Alexa (& similar) need their name back. Most users won't change their device settings when they're nearby (IRL, virtually, or in media); instead, they complain about their presence, and try to rename or exclude them. It's long past time for Amazon to #rebrandAlexa

NEW: To help keep the Alexa momentum going, Amazon has announced four new Echo devices: the next-generation Echo Show 5 with an upgraded speaker system, a redesigned Echo Show 5 Kids, all-new Echo Buds, and a new speaker called the Echo Pop. wired.trib.al/WHtDm1s

She summed it up perfectly:

@RemmeltE @AINowInstitute …and our NAMES, either. #RebrandAlexa

‘We can’t allow companies to use our lives, livelihoods, and institutions as testing grounds for novel technological approaches, experimenting in the wild to our detriment.’ — @AINowInstitute

"Sorry, but your name now belongs to our smart speakers. We've picked out a new one for you to use." This is how @alexa99 users routinely "solve" the problem of someone named Alexa activating their tech; it's easier than changing settings or turning off devices. #RebrandAlexa

@emilymbender @PranavDixit @BuzzFeedNews YES. Plus, we shouldn't allow companies to displace accountability for the technology they put into the world to the people who are using it. This is what Amazon tries to do when we tell them how we can't use our own name in many places because of @alexa99 devices.

"It is essential in this moment that we hold companies accountable for the technology they put into the world and not allow them to displace that accountability to the so-called AI systems themselves." me to @PranavDixit at @BuzzFeedNews buzzfeednews.com/article/pranav…

Those comparing HBO changing their name to "Max" with Amazon's use of the name "Alexa" have a fundamental misunderstanding of what Amazon inflicted on people named Alexa (& similar): Our name is a ❗️WAKE WORD❗️ for 100's of millions of tech products, not *just* a brand name.

@wes_chu It's not lack of funds that makes us balk at changing our name. We have the same attachment to our birth name that other people do. When we hear our own name, it elicits the same response in our brains as other stimuli pertaining to our identity, like seeing our own reflection.

Along that line, I feel like the Federal government should allow all people named Alexa to get a free legal name change. Alexas and Khaleesis.

I think Amazon should cut Alexa a break and change her name to John, or Steve, or Elizabeth. Linda, Charles, Thomas, Pat, etc.

Along that line, I feel like the Federal government should force corporations to relinquish the use of real names as wake words for their tech products. You've got it the wrong way around.

@mcdadstuff This was a temporary problem for you, but it's a constant problem for us. It's time for corporations to stop activating their tech products with human names. #RebrandAlexa

My wife is on a call with someone named Alexa and now the damn Alexa device won’t shut up

On the contrary, hearing someone say "hey Google" is music to the ears of people named Alexa and Siri. It means there's actually a chance they'll be able to use *their own name* in that space without causing chaos and irritation to tech device users. Google got this one right.

We've noticed that the people who express opinions like this never offer up their own name for sacrifice. It was wrong when Apple chose "Siri", and Amazon chose "Alexa". They aren't mistakes to repeat, they're mistakes we should be learning from. #RebrandAlexa

@athenaforall Since it's *our name* that's been hijacked to do so, we're not likely to forget. ▪️More than half the people named Alexa are under 18 ▪️False wakes from people speaking to or about them near @alexa99 devices means that their privacy is at even greater risk than other kids'.

Let’s remember how Amazon built its home surveillance empire that spies on kids: By undercutting competitors with cheap devices, buying up smaller businesses, and lobbying against privacy rules. politico.com/news/2023/03/3…

There's no justification for Amazon's failure to address the damage they're doing to people named Alexa (and similar). Please join us in telling corporations that using real names for tech wake words is unethical. #RebrandAlexa @alexa99 #aiethics

Imagine if each time you gave your name, or whenever someone mentioned or called out to you, people immediately assumed that you were an AI product and not a human being. That's what Amazon has done to people named Alexa, and it's inherently dehumanizing to us. #RebrandAlexa