# Sexualised synthetic personas encode and amplify gendered power asymmetries through voice

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.21366 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.21366/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 11 of its 36 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 19 Jun 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 11 of 11)

- [Word Embeddings Quantify 100 Years of Gender and Ethnic Stereotypes](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1711.08412/) (2017)
- [Stereotypes and Smut: The (Mis)representation of Non-cisgender Identities by Text-to-Image Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.17072/) (2023)
- [Alexa, Google, Siri: What are Your Pronouns? Gender and Anthropomorphism in the Design and Perception of Conversational Assistants](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2106.02578/) (2021)
- [Subjective textitIsms? On the Danger of Conflating Hate and Offence in Abusive Language Detection](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.02268/) (2024)
- ["It's not a representation of me": Examining Accent Bias and Digital Exclusion in Synthetic AI Voice Services](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.09346/) (2025)
- [Un-Straightening Generative AI: How Queer Artists Surface and Challenge the Normativity of Generative AI Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.09805/) (2025)
- [AI-induced sexual harassment: Investigating Contextual Characteristics and User Reactions of Sexual Harassment by a Companion Chatbot](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.04299/) (2025)
- [Creating an African American-Sounding TTS: Guidelines, Technical Challenges,and Surprising Evaluations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.11209/) (2024)
- [Will AI shape the way we speak? The emerging sociolinguistic influence of synthetic voices](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.10650/) (2025)
- [Super Kawaii Vocalics: Amplifying the "Cute" Factor in Computer Voice](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.06235/) (2025)
- ["What do you expect? You're part of the internet": Analyzing Celebrities' Experiences as Usees of Deepfake Technology](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.13065/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

This work examines sexualised AI-generated English-speaking voices offered by a popular commercial platform. New technologies may enable sexual empowerment and greater diversity in gender expression, yet toxic masculinity, heteronormativity, and the abuse of women and LGBTQ+ people remain pervasive online. Drawing on a Feminist HCI perspective, we examine how commercial voice AI systems reproduce and circulate particular performances of gender. We conducted a listening experiment with a diverse group of listeners, combining quantitative adjective selection, qualitative free-text responses, and acoustic analysis. Participants evaluated male- and female-coded voices presented with either sexualised scripts or neutral text. Results reveal a narrow range of gender expression, largely binary and heteronormative. Female-coded voices are more frequently described using sexualised and submissive terms, while male-coded voices are more often associated with dominance and positive traits.