AI-enabled virtual assistants (AIVAs) have become increasingly popular (e.g., Amazon Alexa, Google Home) and assist consumers with various tasks, including home automation, access to media, entertainment, and shopping. Essay 1 focuses on the outcomes of consumers' lost autonomy after information search using AIVAs versus an online search engine (e.g., Google). Drawing on research in advances in AI technology, I predict that interacting with AIVAs (versus online search engines) will lead to several consumer outcomes: decreased cognitive task performance, word of mouth (WOM) intentions, and the desire for an unrelated subsequent search. I find support for my predictions across five studies, using different tasks to assess performance (verbal and quantitative), after interactions with both real (Amazon Alexa) and fake (Halo) AIVA brands, across different respondent populations (CloudResearch, MTurk, Prolific), thereby enhancing confidence in my findings. In Essay 2, I consider a different consumer outcome - embarrassment, and also a different underlying process variable – social presence. I predict that when consumers engage in information search using an AIVA, they will subsequently experience greater embarrassment when asked about embarrassing products (e.g., condoms, medication for gas, etc.). The increased embarrassment occurs even when the information search is unrelated to the embarrassing products (e.g., searching for information on the local weather increases embarrassment related to anti-gas medication), suggesting that it is the process of interacting with the AIVA, rather than the content of such interaction which underlies this effect.

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / This article is about the problem and development of a fashion virtual assistant proposed by using a Kinect v2 camera and image processing, for fashion retail stores. It comes up mainly as a response to the inability of providing unique experiences during the shopping process through the use of diverse devices. Because of this, similar virtual assistant solutions, oriented to provide clothing recommendations, were analyzed to be able to provide software that could give a more personalized suggestion for the users based on their physical characteristics. / Revisión por pares

Contributors from the mid 20th century up to now have developed and refined virtual assistants, taking the technology from a set of rules to assistants driven by Artificial Intelligence. Today, virtual assistants can provide value in organisation and support a sustainable society by conducting basic and repetitive tasks, and help reduce inequalities caused by biased advisors on sensitive topics. Despite its prosperity, current research somewhat lack focus on the evaluation of virtual assistants in industrial applications. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate virtual assistants from a technical, economical and organisational perspective, in order to understand their performance and value in an industrial environment. This has been done in collaboration with IBM and a client company which prefers to remain anonymous in this report. In this company, two IBM Watson Assistants are under development; one for the IT Service Desk, and one for the Ethics & Compliance department. To cover all aspects of the virtual assistants’ performance, quantitative and qualitative methods were used by conducting user testings and surveys. In this process, discussions have been conducted with IBM experts and employees of the firm for which the practical implementation has been studied, to gain a general and specific understanding from different perspectives. From this paper, the following can be concluded. First, technological performance can be described using quantitative metrics such as coverage, confidence, precision and helpfulness, and should be complemented using qualitative measures such as user satisfaction and perceived user understanding. Second, specific technological performance is relative and the technical limitations as well as it’s maturity should be used as a complement to the evaluation of the assistants. Third, identified organisational benefits include: • reduced time-to-resolution, • reduced handling time, • all-hour-support, • scalability and • user understanding Conclusions specific for the use cases show that an assistant implemented in a narrower use case, that is the Ethics & Compliance assistant, easier can be implemented and performs relatively well also in less developed environments. A broader use case, such as the IT assistant, requires more effort to perform at a high level but may be even more beneficial than in the narrow use case once sufficiently refined. / Från mitten av 1900-talet har virtuella assistenter utvecklats och förfinats där teknologin gått från en mängd regler till assistenter drivna av artificiell intelligens. Idag kan virtuella assistenter tillföra värde till organisationer och bidra till ett hållbart samhälle bland annat genom att utföra enkla och återkommande uppgifter samt minska ojämlikheter orsakad av partiska rådgivare i känsliga frågor. Trots framgången har nuvarande forskning inte fokuserat på evalueringen av virtuella assistenter i industriella sammanhang. Syftet med denna rapport är att utvärdera virtuella assistenter från ett tekniskt, ekonomiskt och organisationellt perspektiv för att förstå dess prestation i industriella miljöer. Arbetet har genomförts i samarbete med IBM och en av deras kunder som föredrar att förbli anonyma. I detta företag är två IBM Watson Assistant under utveckling; en för deras IT Service Desk och en för deras avdelning för Ethics & Compliance. I studien har både kvantitativa och kvalitativa metoder använts, däribland användartestning och frågeformulär, för att inkludera alla aspekter av de virtuella assistenternas prestation. I denna process har diskussioner förts med experter inom IBM samt medarbetare på företaget för vilket den praktiska implementationen studerats för att få en förståelse för både generell och specifik kunskap ur olika perspektiv. I denna rapport kan följande slutsatser dras. Ett, den tekniska prestationen kan bestämmas med kvantitativa mätetal så som täckning (coverage), säkerhet (confidence), precision och hjälpsamhet (helpfulness), och kompletteras med kvalitativa mätetal som användarnöjdhet och upplevd förståelse för användaren. Två, specifik teknisk prestation är relativ och de tekniska  begränsningarna samt mognad bör användas som komplement till utvärderingen av assistenterna. Tre, identifierade organisationsfördelar inkluderar: • reducerad time-to-resolution, • reducerad hanteringstid, • support ¨öppen dygnet runt, • skalbarhet, och • användarförståelse Slutsatserna i de specifika fallen visar att en virtuell assistent som implementeras inom ett smalare område, som en assistent för Ethics & compliance, enklare kan implementeras samt presterar relativt bra även i en mindre utvecklad miljö. Bredare områden, som en assistent för IT-support, kräver mer arbete för att prestera på en hög nivå men kan vara ännu mer värdefull än assistenten i det smala området när den blivit tillräckligt utvecklad.

Conversational agents and virtual reality are two emerging technologies that are increasingly being explored in mental health research. Although the combination of these technologies could provide easily accessible and cost-effective treatment for a wide range of health behaviors, use of this opportunity in healthcare has not yet been undertaken. Inherent difficulties of leveraging conversational agent solutions for non machine learning(ML) experts, and challenges - operational as well as legislative -regarding the exploitation of its capabilities, has posed a bottleneck for further adoption in the domain. This study applies interactive machine teaching principles, in the creation of a technical system enabling health-care clinicians (or any other non-ML experts) continuously develop and improve conversational agents deployed in VR applications. The methodology adopted first conducted a literature review providing background knowledge of the field, how conversational agents in VR could support clinicians and patients, methodological aspects and focus of the study. Secondly, a proof-of-concept VR system implementing a conversational agent for stress rehabilitation was developed in joint consultation with psychologists and later evaluated in an experimental study. This study presents a novel approach for deploying VR-based health interventions implementing conversational agents, and findings suggest the feasibility of such applications and the opportunities it has to support clinicians and patients in reaching their goals.

Den expansiva digitala utvecklingen har bidragit till nya avancerade produkter och tjänster, många av dessa hjälper oss med dagliga bestyr och underlättar vardagen. En virtuell assistent är en produkt som med hjälp av artificiell intelligens är designad för att förenkla vardagen. För att kunna uppnå sitt syfte krävs insamling av data, vilket konsumenten själv måste godkänna. Därmed blir det ett ställningstagande gentemot bekvämlighet i användning av virtuella assistenter och förhållande till integritet. I denna undersökning studeras den komplexa relationen till integritet hos konsumenterna, när det kommer till nytta och strategiskt utnyttjande vid godkännande av datainsamling. Dessutom undersöks hur konsumenterna tror att utvecklingen av assisterna kommer att se ut i framtiden. Aspekterna som behandlas är, enligt tidigare forskning i ämnet, kritiska för klyftan som bildas mellan användning och synen på datainsamling kopplat till integritet. Därför har ämnet undersökts på en djupgående nivå genom intervju med sju respondenter givit sin syn på det hela Slutsatserna som undersökningen presenterar grundas med teori och den insamlade empirin, som visar på att det existerar ett komplext förhållande mellan integritet och datautlämning i samband med virtuella assistenter. Resultatet visar på att behovet av användning i många fall väger tyngre än personlig integritet, men det finns ingen tydlig gräns mellan variablerna. Studien drar dessutom slutsatsen att det finns en utvecklingspotential, både funktionellt och fysiskt. Däremot finns det också en kritisk inställning gentemot utvecklingen när det kommer till utbredning av datainsamling. / The expansive digital development has contributed to new advanced products and services, many of which help us with daily tasks and make everyday life easier. A virtual assistant is a product that, with the help of artificial intelligence, is designed to simplify life. In order to be able to achieve their purpose, collection of data is required, which the consumer must approve themselves. Thus, it becomes a stance towards convenience in the use of virtual assistants and the relationship towards integrity. This study examines the complex relationship against consumer integrity, when it comes to utility and strategic utilization of approving data collection. The study also examines how consumers believe that the development of virtual assistants will appear in the future. The aspects that are treated are, according to previous research in the subject, critical of the gap that is formed between use and the view of data collection linked to integrity. Therefore, the subject has been investigated at on a depth level through interviews with seven respondents who have given their views on the subject. The conclusions that the study presents are based on theory and the collected empirical data, which shows that there is a complex relationship between integrity and data disclosure in virtual assistants. The results show that the need for usage in many cases outweighs personal integrity, but there is no clear boundary between these variables. The study also concludes that there is a development potential, both functionally and physically. Although, there is a critical attitude towards the development when it comes to the expansion of data collection.

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[pt] Com cada vez mais objetos interconectados com capacidade de processamento próprios, a computação gradativamente se desvincula do computador desktop , e se torna mais favorável a novos formatos de computadores e novas interfaces. Os computadores que conversam e as interfaces de voz já foram largamente explorados em filmes e livros de ficção como Ela , 2001: Uma Odisséia no Espaço e Eu, robô, dentre outros. No entanto, não é apenas na ficção que a voz como interface aparece: sendo cada vez mais comum nos dias atuais, ela é forma de interação em vários dispositivos como computadores desktop , smartphones , smartwatches , smartTvs e videogames . Essa interface é também adotada em assistentes virtuais que auxiliam seus usuários em toda sorte de funções do dia-a-dia como organização de agenda, anotações, previsão do tempo, despertadores e controle dos chamados objetos inteligentes. O foco dessa pesquisa foi a relação dos usuários com essas interfaces de voz e com os assistentes virtuais, e como está se dando a recepção dos mesmos: como está acontecendo sua adoção, quais as opiniões e expectativas do usuário, e que problemas encontra? A premissa da pesquisa é que a personificação, ou seja, a humanização através da adoção de uma personsalidade e persona, bem como o uso de interfaces conversacionais nos assistentes virtuais facilita a sua aceitação e torna a opinião sobre os mesmos positiva. Para responder essa questão, foi realizada uma revisão bibliográfica e uma pesquisa de campo em duas etapas: a aplicação de um questionário online e a realização de grupos de foco. O questionário foi aplicado com o intuito de recrutar participantes para o grupo de foco, além de investigar a adoção e o uso de assistentes de voz por pessoas que moram no Rio de Janeiro. A aplicação do grupo de foco visou levantar a aceitação e as opiniões desses usuários sobre esses Assistentes Virtuais Personificados que usam a voz como interface, e mapear suas dificuldades com a tecnologia e suas expectativas acerca da mesma para o futuro. O resultado mostrou que a personalidade desses assistentes realmente facilita a sua adoção e tem efeitos positivos sobre a percepção do usuário, porém as interfaces de voz ainda geram desconforto quando usadas em ambiente público. As maiores preocupações levantadas pelos usuários em relação aos assistentes de voz não foram técnicas ou de usabilidade, mas reflexões sobre o impacto dos assistentes na sociedade e na vida das pessoas. / [en] As there are increasingly more interconnected objects with processing capacity, computing gradually disconnects from the desktop computer as it becomes more open to new computer formats and new interfaces. Talking computers and voice interfaces have been extensively explored in films and fiction books such as Her, 2001: A Space Odyssey and I, Robot, among others. However, it is not only in science fiction that the voice user interface appears. It became more common these days as a form of interaction in several devices like desktop computers, smartphones, smartwatches, smartTvs and videogames. This interface is also adopted in virtual assistants that help its users in all sorts of day-to-day functions such as scheduling, annotations, weather forecasting, alarm clocks, and smart objects control, and some of the virtual assistants have been developed with a humanized approach, adopting a name and a personality. The focus of this research was the relationship of users with these voice interfaces and personified virtual assistants, and how they are being received: how is their adoption taking place, what are the opinions and expectations of its users, and what problems do they encounter? The hypothesis of this research is that the personification and the adoption of conversational interfaces in virtual assistants facilitates its acceptance and makes the opinions about it more positive. To answer this question, a bibliographical review and a field research were carried out in two stages with an online form and focus groups. The questionnaire was applied in order to investigate the adoption and use of voice assistants by people living in Rio de Janeiro, and to recruit participants to the focus group. The focus group aimed to explore the acceptance and opinions of these users about the personified virtual assistants that use the voice as interface, and to map their difficulties and their expectations for the future of technology. The result shows that the personality of these assistants facilitates their adoption and has positive effects on user perception, but voice interfaces still generate discomfort when used in the public environment. The major concerns users faced while using voice assistants were not technical or usability problems but worries about the impact of the assistants on society and people s lives.

Digitalization crosses all areas of life (Hess et al. 2014). Recent progress in artificial intelligence (AI) opens new potentials for further developments and improvements, with virtual coaching being a prime example. Virtual coaches (VCs) aim to optimize the user’s life by transforming cognition, affection, and behavior towards a stated goal. Since they emerged from the health and sports domain, a typical example are VCs in the form of digital avatars, which instruct physical exercises, shape health-related knowledge and provide motivational support to achieve the user’s goals (e.g., weight loss) (Ding et al. 2010; Tropea et al. 2019). Nonetheless, the application areas of VCs are versatile and exploring the potential areas (e.g., healthcare, work, finance, leisure, and environment) constitutes an essential topic of future research and development. According to Gartner’s hype cycle for human capital management technology, VCs are still in their infancy but are considered innovation triggers for the following years (Gartner, Inc. 2021). Specifically, VCs can be a replacement or complement for traditional human-to-human coaching scenarios and promise broad access to personalized coaching services independent of place and time (Graßmann and Schermuly 2021). As a result, VCs may contribute to solving challenges posed by an aging society and skilled labor shortage (European Commission 2016; Edwards and Cheok 2018). Last but not least, the recent COVID-19 pandemic additionally showcased the need for VCs as an alternative to traditional face-to-face interventions. Against this background and driven by the potential and promises of VCs, research has recently engaged in developing and understanding VC applications (Tropea et al. 2019; Lete et al. 2020; Graßmann and Schermuly 2021). To introduce the concept in information systems (IS) research and provide a basis for researchers and practitioners alike, this catchword aims at providing a holistic view on VCs. The structure of this paper is as follows. Section 2 elaborates a definition, delimits VCs from related system classes, and proposes a research framework. Section 3 aggregates existing research into the framework and concludes with an outlook on future IS research perspectives.

The perspective of procurement and supply chain management is changing dramatically; traditionally, it was seen as a support function; however, the procurement function is receiving increased attention and investment as an essential contributor to the strategic success and a business enabler. While an end-to-end digital supply chain is an opportunity as it unleashes the next level of strategic growth and involves minimal investment in infrastructure, it is still a challenge to optimize and transform. Furthermore, the recent pandemics and geopolitical disruptions of Covid-19, the Ukraine-Russian war, Brexit and the US-China trade war; have structurally changed the global economy and revealed a new risk assessment that will result in the re-introduction of buffers, boundaries across industries and a partial return to regionalization with sort of de-globalization in which existing just-in-time getting replaced by just-in-case strategy.