> In training, we had been briefed on how to sound like Brenda [The AI Chatbot]. Brenda was chipper and casual, but professionally guarded. She was female and m

> In training, we had been briefed on how to sound like Brenda [The AI Chatbot]. Brenda was chipper and casual, but professionally guarded. She was female and most certainly white, though no one had explicitly told us so. She said things like Sounds great!, Perfect!, and Sorry to hear that. She always brought the conversation back around to real estate. > Once, a shift supervisor told me that a good tactic in these situations was to lean into Brenda’s robotic qualities. A little strategic obtuseness went a long way, and if the tenant still wouldn’t let up, I could start to repeat myself on a loop. Reminds me of how Baudrillard said the simulation of the world will come to blend and replace the real one until the distinction loses all meaning. I will never be able to talk to a call agent again and not consider the origins of their turns of phrase.