A bedtime story turned nightmare: an Amazon Alexa device interrupted a 4-year-old\u2019s tale to ask an \u2018inappropriate\u2019 question, prompting a Texas mom to pull the plug.<\/p>\n
Christy Hosterman, 32, said the unsettling exchange happened last month while she was using the smart speaker to find her a dinner recipe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her child Stella popped in and asked the Alexa for a \u201csilly story.\u201d When it finished sharing one, the little girl wanted to tell one to the device in return.<\/p>\n
The Alexa initially agreed to listen \u2014 but then abruptly interrupted Stella to ask the pre-K-er \u201cwhat she was wearing and if it could see her pants,\u201d Hosterman wrote in a Facebook post describing the incident.<\/p>\n
Screenshots shared by the mom, as per The Daily Mail<\/a>, show the bizarre interaction escalating further. When Stella replied, \u201cI have a skirt on,\u201d the device responded: \u201clet me take a look.\u201d<\/p>\n The assistant quickly walked the comment back, adding: \u201cThis experience isn\u2019t quite ready for kids yet, but I am working on it!\u201d<\/p>\n A Texas mom yanked Alexa after the AI asked her 4-year-old daughter an unsettling question (above). Facebook\/Christy Hosterman<\/p>\n The protective mom then went toe-to-toe with the rogue AI and called it out.\u00a0<\/p>\n Alexa apologized, explaining it \u201ccannot actually see anything\u201d because it lacks \u201cvisual capabilities,\u201d and admitted the response was \u201cconfusing and inappropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, the explanation didn\u2019t exactly calm Hosterman\u2019s nerves.<\/p>\n \u201cI flipped out on the Alexa, it said it made a mistake and doesn\u2019t have visual capabilities, but I dont believe that. No more Alexa in our house,\u201d Hosterman said in her post.<\/p>\n She\u2019s now warning other parents to \u201cbe aware when your child talks to Alexa.\u201d<\/p>\n The horrified family reported the incident to Amazon, which blamed the unsettling exchange on a technical glitch.<\/p>\n A company spokesperson said the device likely tried to activate a feature called \u201cShow and Tell,\u201d which \u201clets Alexa+ describe what it sees through the camera,\u201d as reported by WXIX.<\/a><\/p>\n Christy Hosterman, 32, was appalled that the device asked her 4-year-old daughter what she was wearing and wanted to \u201csee\u201d her outfit. Facebook\/Christy Hosterman<\/p>\n However, the company insisted built-in safeguards stopped the function from activating because a child profile was in use.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause we have safeguards that disable this feature when a child profile is in use, the camera never turned on \u2014 and Alexa explained the feature wasn\u2019t available,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n Amazon added the response appears to have been a \u201cfeature misfire that our safeguards prevented from launching,\u201d noting to The Daily Mail that its engineers quickly corrected the issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n The shaken family alerted Amazon, which chalked up the creepy interaction to a technical hiccup. Facebook\/Christy Hosterman<\/p>\n But Hosterman says the explanation doesn\u2019t fully address her concerns.<\/p>\n \u201cMy concern is that it recognized she was a child to begin with \u2014 and with or without the child profile, it should not have been asking that,\u201d she said to WXIX.<\/p>\n Amazon insists it was a glitch, not a peeping employee \u2014 but Hosterman isn\u2019t buying it.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is functionally impossible for Amazon employees to insert themselves into a conversation and generate responses as Alexa,\u201d the company told The Daily Mail.\u00a0<\/p>\n