I achieved the near-impossible feat yesterday of grabbing up my supermarket purchases and receipt from the automated check-out machine at Kroger before Robot Rhonda could urge me to do so. And though I was several feet away by then and headed for the exit, there was still a voice reminder to take my receipt.
A few years ago I bought a FireTV and have studiously ignored every attempt it has made to get me to talk to it. Every so often something will pop up on the screen suggesting that I say something like “Alexa, please show me mystery shows.” I already have a cat who ignores me when I ask it questions. I don’t need my TV telling me what to watch, much less commenting on my language.
It’s a marketing ploy. The manufacturer already has your money… and if the thing irritates you enough to want to smash it, you’ll need to buy a replacement. Might be their brand (in which case, PROFIT$$%), or another brand, in which case they’re no worse off than they were before.