Amazon Echo Users Worried by Alexa’s Creepy Laughs, Fix On its Way

Amazon’s voice assistant Alexa running on Echo devices has been reported by users to be laughing on its own.

Amazon Echo. 

(Photo Courtesy: Amazon)

Amazon’s Echo smart speakers have run into a creepy laughter problem. The company’s voice assistant has reportedly gone on an involuntary laughing spree, which has spooked many users across the globe on Thursday.

Trouble is, Alexa has been found laughing out loud without any human intervention, or any command (like Alexa, tell me a joke) thrown its way. This weird development has forced many Amazon Echo users to unplug their devices, just so that the witch-like laughter doesn’t end up giving them the nightmares.

In its statement to The Verge, the Jeff Bezos-owned online giant has informed that a fix will be issued very soon.

Asked about what possibly could have triggered Alexas across the world to laugh, Amazon stated that it is likely that the Echo might have misinterpreted commands, thinking the users asked her to laugh. To make this go away, they’ve even changed the go-to Alexa command from Alexa, laugh to Alexa, can you laugh for the users, to which Alexa would now say, Sure I can laugh, instead of laughing straight away.

Now, that clarification would have seemed believable, only if people had actually spoken in front of the device. Instead, people were quick to point out that the Echos started giggling on its own, here’s what some of them had posted on Twitter earlier on Thursday.

Not obeying owners might be stretching it a bit for now, but Amazon clearly is running into issues that the company might not have seen coming.

They need to find a permanent resolution to any possible mishaps like these, or else, people will have no qualms moving away from its ecosystem, which will greatly benefit Google and even Apple to some extent.

(Hey there, lady! What makes you laugh? Do you laugh at sexism, patriarchy, and misogyny? Do 'sanskaari' stereotypes crack you up? This Women's Day, join The Quint's Ab Laugh Naari campaign. Pick up that beer, say cheers, and send us photographs or videos of you laughing out loud at [e-mail])