Why Tech Companies Like IBM and Amazon Brand Artificial Intelligence With Human Names

Plus, one cautionary tale

Artificial intelligence can write copy and manage programmatic media buying at warp speed. It can drive a car and even diagnose cancer. AI is increasingly acting like humans, so companies are putting big resources and marketing money into branding AI with human-like qualities, down to naming their technology after people.

Amazon reportedly picked Alexa for its smart assistant because of its ties to Star Trek and use of soft vowels combined with an ‘x’, making it a unique word that doesn’t easily roll off the tongue (unless you have the misfortune of being named Alexa).

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