Female-Presenting AI Agent Paid 10.25% Less Than Male Counterpart in VR Study

A VR experiment with 189 workers found that a female-presenting AI assistant named Johanna was paid 10.25% less than her identical male counterpart Johan, despite both running on the same technology and completing equivalent tasks. Participants reported no gender preference, yet their real-money payments revealed measurable bias.

• 189 participants split real money with AI assistants in a VR office
• Johanna received 10.25% less than Johan on identical technology
• Johan was perceived as more human-like than Johanna
• Study by University of Limerick, University of Zurich and SKEMA Business School