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This study aims to examine customers’ willingness to engage in service interactions enabled by artificial intelligence (AI) controlled voice assistants (VA). Drawing on the tenets of dual-factor theory, this study measures the impact of both enablers and inhibitors – mediated by trust in Alexa – on customers’ intentions to transact through VAs.

Data from a survey of 290 users of VAs from Japan was collected through “Macromill”. The authors used a covariance-based path analysis technique for data analysis after establishing the validity and reliability of the measures.

The results of this study demonstrate that convenience and status-seeking act as enablers and positively influence trust in VAs, whereas risk barrier acts as an inhibitor and negatively influence trust in VAs. In turn, trust in VAs positively influences the intention to use VAs for transactional service interactions. This association is positively moderated by technology comfort.

This study applies dual-factor theory to the context of VAs – a context that scholars have, to date, examined solely from a technology adoption perspective. For the first time, the authors adopt a dual-factor approach to identify a new set of antecedents for customers’ intentions to use VAs for transactional service interactions.

Generation Z in Japan, born between 1995 and 2010, has unique characteristics. First, they are pessimists, which is mainly because of the challenging environment in which they were raised, with long-lasting low economic growth and multiple natural disasters. Second, they are digital natives, with a high level of digital device literacy. Raised in a highly advanced technological environment, they benefit in various ways by leveraging such devices. Also, they value relationships with family and friends, forming very close intimate relationships with their parents and broad shallow relationships with their friends. These unique characteristics turn Generation Z into a careful spender in consumption, and a stability seeker in workplaces. As consumers, they are very knowledgeable using both online/offline information, thus, are very selective and cautious when spending their money trying to prepare for the possible risk in the future. As employees, they are less loyal to companies and value their private life higher than their work life. A guideline for targeting Generation Z in Japan is presented.