Parents of children called Alexa say their daughters are being bullied because it is the same name that Amazon uses for its virtual assistant. Some have even changed their child's name because they say the barrage of Alexa jokes is "relentless". They are calling on Amazon to change the default wake word for its devices to a non-human name. Amazon says it is "saddened" by these accounts, and that alternative wake words are available. There are more than 4,000 people called Alexa aged under 25 in the UK. The problem, which has attracted complaints since Alexa's launch in 2014, is not confined to the UK. The problem, which has attracted complaints since Alexa's launch in 2014, is not confined to the UK. Lauren Johnson, from Massachusetts, USA, has started a campaign called Alexa is a Human. Since Amazon's Alexa devices were introduced in the UK in 2016, the popularity of the name has dramatically fallen. Then it was the 167th most popular baby name in England and Wales, but by 2019 it was 920th.
