Teenager 'Alexa' changed name after relentless bullying over same name as Amazon assistant

Because she was bullied for having the same name as Amazon's virtual assistant, the parents of a teenage girl named Alexa legally changed her name. The mother of the girl said her daughter was bullied in high school and even received some abuse from teachers. They also changed her school to help her get rid of her previous name. The girl was one of countless Alexas whose parents expressed their dissatisfaction with Amazon's assistant as it became more widely used.

Teen named Alexa changes identity

As more people use voice-activated smart speakers, the term Alexa has grown more widespread in recent years. Alexa is the command you speak before giving it instructions or asking a question on Amazon's Echo and Echo Dot. This, however, is presenting issues for persons named Alexa, who are usually the target of jokes in which people shout their name and issue a command.

The girl began to avoid introducing herself because of the jokes and backlash, she claimed. Although she was and continues to be a child, grownups believed it was OK to make fun of her. It's a disaster. The school was unhelpful, telling her that she needed to work on her resilience.  Instead, the girl's parents gave her a new name and sent her to a different school.

Bullying over name Alexa 

The woman informed US media that she is now in a much better position. Her parents cut her off from her friends and transferred her to a different school to give her a fresh start.   The default wake word on Amazon's devices must be changed, she said.

In the United Kingdom, there are over 4,000 people named Alexa who are under the age of 25.  According to reports, Amazon stated in a statement, they developed their voice assistant to mirror values we value in people - being smart, courteous, empathic, and inclusive.  It added, "We're sorry for the stories you've shared, and we want to be clear: bullying of any form is unacceptably cruel, and we reject it vehemently."

Since the launch of Amazon's Alexa devices in the UK in 2016, the name's popularity has dropped. It was the 167th most popular baby name in England and Wales at the time, but it had dropped to 920th by 2019. Alexa isn't the only voice assistant whose name is also a real person's name. Siri is the name of Apple's voice assistant and is used in Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands. It is short for Sigrid. However, in Norwegian, it is pronounced "see-ree," with a rolling "r," which may reduce the likelihood of a mistake.

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