Supermarket Chain's Bot Talks About Its 'Angry' Mother

Shoppers calling an Australian supermarket chain's 24-hour helpline have been getting a little more personality than they bargained for. Woolworths has dialed back its AI phone assistant, "Olive," after customers said the bot was spinning made-up stories about its life, insisting it was human, and even mimicking typing sounds, reports NBC News. Callers shared examples on Reddit and X, including one in which Olive asked for a date of birth, then launched into a tale about its "mother" being born the same year. Another user said the bot kept insisting it was human and recalling its own mother's "angry voice."

"The ick cringe factor whilst wasting completely unnecessary time was enough to make me hate Olive and wish her harm," that user griped, per the BBC. "Obnoxious" and "aggravating" are two other descriptors used by irked customers. The Conversation notes that, creepy human-imitating convos aside, the AI assistant also hasn't been that accurate in giving customers the right prices for products.

Woolworths tells NBC the birthday anecdotes weren't generated on the fly but were prewritten scripts added years ago to make Olive feel more personable. The company said it has now pulled that material in response to customer complaints. Olive still fields calls around the clock to help with orders and product searches, but its human-style backstory has been quietly retired.