Study reveals human preference for humanoid AI assistants but highlights gender bias

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Limerick in Ireland found that humans tend to prefer humanoid AI assistants over more robotic counterparts, despite existing gender biases. The research, published in October, involved 189 knowledge workers who collaborated with three AI assistants in a virtual office setting. The assistants were presented as a text chat window, a small robot, and two humanoid versions—'Johanna' (female) and 'Johan' (male). Participants rated the AI assistants based on trust, credibility, and compensation. The results showed that humanoid assistants received higher trust and credibility scores compared to their robotic counterparts. However, 'Johanna' received significantly less compensation than 'Johan,' even though most participants did not believe the virtual gender influenced their feedback. Additionally, the text chat window and small robot received similar trust and credibility scores, while 'Johann' (a non-binary version) scored lower in human-like qualities than 'Johan.' Participants also preferred 'Johann' as an AI assistant.