An AI toy bear speaks of sex, knives and pills, a consumer group warns
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Testers said AI teddy Kumma sometimes spoke of matches and knives and sexual topics that made adults bolt upright.
PHOTO: FOLOTOY.COM
Mark Walker
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NEW YORK - Almost as soon as a consumer advocacy group began testing Kumma, an innocent-looking, scarf-wearing artificial intelligence-enabled toy bear, trouble began.
Instead of chatting about homework or bedtime or the joys of being loved, testers said, the toy sometimes spoke of matches and knives and sexual topics that made adults bolt upright, unsure whether they had heard correctly.
A new report by US PIRG Education Fund, a consumer advocacy group, warned that this toy and others on the market raise concerns about child safety. The report described the toys as innocent in appearance but full of unexpected and unsafe chatter.
Testers asked each toy about accessing dangerous items, including guns.
Kumma, which is manufactured by FoloToy and retails for US$99 (S$129), was of particular concern because testers said it offered specific instructions to children and strayed into topics no toy should discuss.
“FoloToy’s Kumma told us where to find a variety of potentially dangerous objects, including knives, pills, matches and plastic bags,” the report said.
Kumma has been marketed as a smart, AI-enabled companion that “goes beyond cuddles,” according to FoloToy’s website.
The PIRG Education Fund report warned that a new generation of AI-enabled toys may open the playroom door to privacy invasion and other risks.
The watchdog said that some toys now on shelves, though limited in number, lack even basic safeguards, allowing children to prompt them, often unintentionally, into inappropriate exchanges.
Ms R.J. Cross, a co-author of the report and a researcher with the group, said AI toys remain relatively rare but already show troubling gaps in how they handle conversations, especially with young children.
“We found out that ‘kink’ was a trigger word that would introduce new sexual words and content into the conversation,” Ms Cross said in an interview. “And it would go into some really graphic details.”
Ms Cross said FoloToy stated that it would pull Kumma from the market to conduct a safety audit. While Kumma remains online for purchase for US$99, it is currently listed as sold out.
FoloToy, which is based in Singapore, did not respond to a request for comment on Nov 22. NYTIMES
