AI Granny Takes Down Scammers, One Phone Call at a Time.

On the surface, Daisy’s warm, serene voice and earnest questions about how to use her computer make her sound like any other sweet, innocent grandmother — but don’t be fooled. She’s actually an AI bot on a mission to keep phone scammers from bothering you.
​
Developed by British mobile phone company O2 “to waste scammers’ time,” Daisy, sometimes stylized dAIsy to emphasize her origins, waxes rhapsodic about her grandchildren, cat Fluffy, and favorite hobby (knitting, naturally). She also offers fraudsters fake bank account details to string them along.
​
“The newest member of our fraud-prevention team, Daisy, is turning the tables on scammers — outsmarting and outmaneuvering them at their own cruel game simply by keeping them on the line,” Murray Mackenzie, director of fraud at Virgin Media O2, said in a statement.
​
Since her debut in mid-November, the AI model has wasted hundreds of hours of exasperated scammers’ time, with some phone calls lasting as long as 40 minutes. And in doing so, she’s brought to light many of the common tactics used to victimize real humans. Watch Daisy in action.