European study finds 10% lower reward for female AI assistant

A study by researchers at European universities examined how the perceived gender of AI assistants influences trust and financial rewards. In virtual reality, 189 participants interacted with a text chatbot, a desktop robot and one of two human-looking avatars—Johan or Johanna—all using OpenAI’s GPT-4. After the task, they could distribute up to four Swiss francs to each assistant. The male and female AIs received similar ratings for their professional contribution, but Johanna received 10% less money than Johan; the difference was larger among male participants. Human-looking avatars also generated more trust and higher rewards than the robot. According to UNESCO data cited by Xataka, women hold 20% of technical jobs and 12% of AI research positions, while language models reproduce gender stereotypes.