---
title: "Taylor Swift Reportedly Threatened Microsoft Over Racist Chatbot"
description: "Microsoft President Brad Smith revealed in his new book that Taylor Swift threatened to sue the company over \"Tay\" the Twitter chatbot-turned-Nazi."
date: "2019-09-10"
modified: "2019-09-10"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/taylor-swift-threatened-microsoft-racist-chatbot"
categories:
  - "Artificial Intelligence"
tags:
  - "artificial intelligence"
  - "microsoft"
  - "tay"
  - "taylor swift"
  - "the digest"
---

# Taylor Swift Reportedly Threatened Microsoft Over Racist Chatbot

![Microsoft President Brad Smith revealed in his new book that Taylor Swift threatened to sue the company over "Tay" the Twitter chatbot-turned-Nazi.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/taylor-swift-threatened-microsoft-racist-chatbot.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Toglenn via Wikimedia Commons\</em\>*

## Namesake

Remember the 2016 internet horror story where Microsoft created a Twitter bot, named Tay, and had to shut it down [within a single day](<https://www.theverge.com/2016/3/24/11297050/tay-microsoft-chatbot-racist>) after internet trolls turned it into a [hate-spewing neo-Nazi](<https://twitter.com/geraldmellor/status/712880710328139776>)?

According to Microsoft President Brad Smith's new book, pop star Taylor Swift took issue with the debacle. [As reported by *Gizmodo*](<https://gizmodo.com/taylor-swift-threatened-legal-action-against-microsoft-1838011533?>), Swift's lawyers apparently got in touch with Microsoft to complain that Tay's name created a "false and misleading association between the popular singer and our chatbot."

## Rebranding

According to the book, the reason that Microsoft's next chatbot — which was barred from discussing [topics like politics and race](<https://qz.com/1340990/microsofts-politically-correct-chat-bot-is-even-worse-than-its-racist-one/>) — got a name change was to avoid going to court.

*Gizmodo* reports that Microsoft's copyright lawyers weren't quite convinced by the purported connection between Tay the chatbot and [Taylor Swift](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/taylor-swift-facial-recognition>) the pop megastar. But they decided to avoid a legal battle and dubbed the replacement chatbot "Zo" instead. So far, no other celebrities have complained.

**READ MORE:** [Taylor Swift Threatened Legal Action Against Microsoft Over Racist and Genocidal Chatbot Tay](<https://gizmodo.com/taylor-swift-threatened-legal-action-against-microsoft-1838011533?>) \[*Gizmodo*\]

**More on Microsoft AI:** *[Microsoft Is Worried Its AI Will Go Rogue and Hurt Its Reputation](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/biased-ai-microsoft-reputation>)*

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)