DSC03811

Microsoft may have an issue on its hands in its hometown.

A Windows Phone user and die-hard Seahawks fan alerted us this afternoon to this scandal in the making: Microsoft’s Cortana virtual assistant is giving the New England Patriots the edge in Super Bowl 2015, answering the question, “What do you think about the Seattle Seahawks?” with this reply, “It’s hard to say, but if I were a bettin’ AI, I wouldn’t put my money on the Seattle Seahawks right now.”

What’s going on here? Chalk it up to an algorithm. Cortana’s football picks are based on the Bing prediction engine, which currently gives the Patriots a slight advantage over the Seahawks, with a 51.5 percent likelihood of prevailing.

In case you’re wondering, Apple’s Siri answers the question, “Who will win the Super Bowl?” by answering, “According to my sources, the odds favor the Patriots over the Seahawks by 1 point.” We’re checking in with Amazon Echo’s Alexa for a third opinion.

Update: GeekWire columnist Frank Catalano reports that Alexa cops out with, “I can’t see the future” and, when pressed, “Clairvoyance isn’t my strong suit.”

Here’s a quick video of Cortana answering the question.

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to GeekWire's free newsletters to catch every headline

Job Listings on GeekWork

Find more jobs on GeekWork. Employers, post a job here.