Human Computer Interaction

Study finds humans pay female-presenting AI agents 10% less than male ones

Researchers at the University of Limerick had 189 participants interact with male and female-presenting AI assistants in a virtual reality office, dividing real money as payment for completed tasks. The female-presenting agent, "Johanna," received 10.25 percent less pay than the identical male-presenting agent, "Johan," and was also rated as less human-like, according to the study published in Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction.

futurism.com · 2026-10-11

Designer Guillaume Ardaud unveils speculative 'Lightbulb Computer' concept

Designer Guillaume Ardaud has published a speculative hardware concept called the Lightbulb Computer, which combines a projector and computer vision inside a standard lightbulb form factor. The device, shown via design prototypes and an accompanying video, responds to voice commands and pointing gestures, projecting interactive overlays like recipes, timers and answers to questions directly onto household surfaces.

lightbulbcomputer.com · 2026-10-10