For women called Alexa, it's funny, frustrating to share name with Amazon device

SEATTLE – Since Amazon introduced the Alexa-enabled Echo device in 2014, the jokes have become so omnipresent that Alexa Philbeck, 29, briefly considered changing, or at least obscuring, her name.

"I work in the service industry, so my name is printed on receipts that people see all the time" said Philbeck, a Seattle bartender. "I get comments constantly and people trying to make jokes or order me around."

"Alexa, take our photo," she says, imitating a group of tourists who recently visited the establishment where she works.

It's become a chore for Philbeck to acknowledge the near-constant barrage of remarks.

"When you hear it so often, it's hard to respond in a way that is actually nice," she says.

But, over time, Philbeck, who proudly describes herself as "stubborn," got over it. "It's a part of my life. I've accepted it," says Philbeck. "I'm not going to change my name because of Amazon.com."

Being named "Alexa" in a landscape dotted with an estimated 11 million plus Echo devices can be funny, and just as often, frustrating. As Alexa's reach expands, the name seems to be on everyone's lips. This year it's forecast that 35.6 million Americans will use a stand-alone, voice-activated assistant device at least once a month, up 130 percent from 2016 — and Amazon's Echo dominates that market.

Alexa, however, is far from an uncommon name. Since 1998, Alexa has consistently ranked among the top 100 female baby names in the United States, according to the Social Security Administration.

This means, for a sizable population, Amazon's choice for the name of the voice behind their gadgets, which sold big during Amazon's recent Prime Day sales event, has not gone unnoticed.

"One of the kids I've been babysitting forever — they love talking to the Echo. 'Alexa, Alexa, Alexa, Alexa,' and I'm like 'What?' They're like, 'Not you,' " Alexa Sorensen said.

As a nanny working in a home with an Echo system, Sorensen said confusion like this is commonplace. So commonplace, in fact, that the 21-year-old from Seattle sometimes doesn't hear her charges when they refer to her as "Alexa," leading the kids to use her surname instead.

She doesn't let it get to her, though. She's even ordered an Echo device to use in her own home. That may seem paradoxical, but Sorensen said, "I just use a lot of the Amazon products, and it just seemed easier."