Alexa gets a language lesson… from Susie Dent!

It has been baffled by some of our regional accents, with frustrating if occasionally hilarious results. 

Now Amazon’s Alexa smart speaker has been given some lessons in Geordie, Brummie and Glaswegian to help it with some of our quirkier dialects. 

Countdown lexicographer Susie Dent, who worked with the firm to teach the voice assistant, said: ‘Nowhere is the diversity of English vocabulary more apparent than in Britain. 

Countdown lexicographer Susie Dent, who worked with the firm to teach the voice assistant, said: ‘Nowhere is the diversity of English vocabulary more apparent than in Britain’

‘It’s virtually impossible to learn every single phrase and utterance but, with technology getting smarter all the time, perhaps one day assistants like Alexa will understand everything from ‘dabberlick’ [Scots for tall and skinny] to ‘crumpsy’ [grumpy among Midlands folk].’ 

According to Amazon’s own research, a third of people admit changing the way they speak in order to be understood, while 18 per cent are too embarrassed to speak up when they heard a regional word or phrase they did not understand.

As part of the ongoing development of Alexa, Amazon uses language experts at its Cambridge Development Centre to train the assistant on the variations of British speech, including the rolling ‘R’ in Scottish accents to the use of long vowels in the south of England.

Amazon’s Alexa smart speaker has been given some lessons in Geordie, Brummie and Glaswegian to help it with some of our quirkier dialects 

Dennis Stansbury, Alexa UK country manager, said continually improving the software’s understanding of language was vital for making the user experience the same for everyone.

‘Unlike us, Alexa cannot feign understanding through nodding, so in the instance Alexa mishears a word or question, the team have worked hard on ways to get better at understanding these – like Alexa asking follow-up questions to clarify what you might mean,’ he said.

‘The goal is for Alexa to work equally well for every customer, and at Amazon we’re always working to improve.

‘On this project, Susie Dent, a top lexicographer, has joined with Alexa to highlight the complexity of the British language and bolster Alexa’s vocabulary with uniquely British phrases and words.’