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Does the gender pay gap extend to AI? Research finds female AI agents ‘paid’ less

October 5, 2026
Artificial Intelligence
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In a virtual-reality office study presented at NordiCHI ’26, 189 workers split real money with AI assistants and gave the female-presenting agent, Johanna, 10.25% less than the identical male-presenting Johan. We explain the University of Limerick and Zurich research, how the gap compares with UK pay data, the say-do gap behind it, earlier evidence on gendered AI, and how businesses should design and test AI personas.

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When AI Disagrees, People Change How They Perceive the Technology, Not Their Original View

September 23, 2026
Artificial Intelligence
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A University of Michigan study of 482 US adults, published in Computers in Human Behavior Reports, tested what happens when a chatbot pushes back on a user’s reasoning about personal dilemmas. Agreement raised confidence; disagreement did not lower it. What changed instead was how participants rated the AI, which they judged less emotionally capable and more machine-like, and how willing they were to use it again. This article sets out the design, the asymmetry, the limits, and what it means for anyone engineering sycophancy out of a model.