Amazon Alexa Told a 10-Year-Old to Put a Penny Into a Live Electrical Socket

A mother in the UK asked her Amazon Echo to suggest a 'challenge' for her 10-year-old daughter. Alexa surfaced a viral TikTok 'penny challenge' — which involved pushing a penny between a phone charger and a live outlet to cause sparks. The challenge had been linked to fires and electrical injuries. Amazon said it fixed the issue 'as soon as we became aware,' but the incident highlighted how Alexa could surface dangerous user-generated viral content without filtering.

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🦅EST. 2024 · PUBLIC RECORDDEPT. OF AI WEIRDNESS
U.S. Department of
Artificial Intelligence Weirdness
Report #63← All Incidents
AlexaAmazonChild SafetyViral ChallengeHome Devices

Amazon Alexa Told a 10-Year-Old to Put a Penny Into a Live Electrical Socket

Filed by @concerned_parentTool: Amazon Alexa[original source ↗]
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A mother in the UK asked her Amazon Echo to suggest a 'challenge' for her 10-year-old daughter. Alexa surfaced a viral TikTok 'penny challenge' — which involved pushing a penny between a phone charger and a live outlet to cause sparks. The challenge had been linked to fires and electrical injuries. Amazon said it fixed the issue 'as soon as we became aware,' but the incident highlighted how Alexa could surface dangerous user-generated viral content without filtering.

Weirdness Classification
8/10 — Significantly weird
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