Woolworths has tweaked its AI-powered virtual assistant, Olive, after customers reported odd attempts at “banter”, including references to its “mother” who spoke in an “angry voice”. The change comes as Woolworths has told investors it wants to use AI and a partnership with Google to turn Olive into a “market-leading conversational shopping companion”, with an upgraded version expected in the second half of this financial year.

Recent checks of the current Olive assistant found it could sometimes provide prices that don’t match what’s listed on the Woolworths website, even for common everyday groceries, while getting other items right. Woolworths confirmed it is looking into the issue. On the Olive page, the company also warns customers that “Olive is powered by AI and may make mistakes. Always check the product label.”

Meanwhile, social media users have shared their sometimes bizarre experiences interacting with Olive. One Reddit user described being asked for their birthdate and then hearing the chatbot go off on an unexpected tangent: “It asked me for my date of birth, and when I gave it, it started rambling about how it’s [sic] mother was born in the same year,” they wrote. “I’m already pissed that I have to call and now I’ve got some robot babbling to me on the phone? Wtf Woolies?”

In a second conversation, the same user said Olive referred to having an “uncle”, adding: “Huh. My uncle was born that year. He was one of the 1st ever fuel cells. I think that’s where I get my energy from. Anyway, the last thing I need to get is your postcode. What is it?” Olive said, according to the user.

On X, @verynormalman said their mother had a similar experience: “My mum said she called woolworths and the woolworths AI “Olive” answered and kept claiming to be a real person and started talking about its memories of its mother and her angry voice,” they wrote.

Another Reddit user, LyndonM, complained about what they saw as forced small talk even when being transferred to staff: ”Even when connecting me to a human it made fake typing sounds when looking something up, asks for my birthdate and ‘bonds’ by saying her… relative was born in the same year,” they wrote.

A Woolworths spokesperson confirmed that an employee many years ago had prompted Olive to chat about its family to give the bot a quirky personality, and that responses about Olive’s “mother” appear programmed to trigger after a customer provides their birthdate. “Our digital assistant Olive has been around since 2018. Over this time, customer feedback for Olive has been very positive, with many noting its personality,” the spokesperson said. “A number of responses about birthdays were written for Olive by a team member several years ago as a more personal way for Olive to connect with customers. As a result of customer feedback, we recently removed this particular scripting. We are always evolving Olive and we welcome our customers’ feedback to help us provide the best possible customer experience.”

The tweaks also come as debate grows about AI’s broader impact, with fears it could disrupt many industries and lead to job losses as more companies embrace the technology to cut costs.