For this imperfect robot interaction, I worked with Justina this week and we created an IVR voice assistant for a bank drive-thru. In this interaction, we created a snarky bank teller who makes it really hard to access your account and complete the transactions you want without being judged the entire time.
Screen Recording 2026-02-09 at 9.05.18 PM.mov
A couple things we did: first, when the user is prompted to confirm their name or phone number, the system gives ridiculous response confirmations. In the phone number example, the user gives their phone number, but the system repeats it back as a whole number instead of a phone number. When the user gives their name, the robot recognizes the name but chooses not to call you by it. It ignores politeness completely and just goes with whatever she wants to do.
Once you get into the interaction, you have three options: you can check your balance, withdraw money, or deposit money. When you try to access any of these options, the system prompts you to solve a riddle. The riddle acts like the PIN you’d normally use to log in or access your account. The difference is that instead of being a quick security step, it becomes this annoying gatekeeping moment that makes the whole experience feel more like you’re being tested than helped.
Each option also has the robot being pretty rude as you try to access your own money. if the withdraw money option is selected, the system stops the user and asks if they are sure they want to continue because the account funds are low, and its not subtle about it. If the deposit money option is selected, the system is passive aggressive in it’s “praise”, snarkily framing the action as as an investment in the users own future. Finally, if you check your balance, the robot makes a judgment on you again, reflects on the state of your fictional balance, and tells you you don’t have much of money, making you think twice about what you want to do next.
While a real IVR bank teller would want it make it easier for you to interface with the business, all of these interactions create the feeling that the system isn’t here to help. It’s here to make you feel slightly insane.