NORTH CHARLESTON — Abby Leibowitz has been fascinated by the reaction to the receptionist at Katsubō Chicken & Ramen on Spruill Avenue.

Her name is Kat.

“Hi, thanks for calling Katsubō,” says the voice on the other end of the line when customers call the North Charleston restaurant. “This is Kat, your friendly AI attendant. How can I help you today?”

Some guests respond kindly, often receiving the information they called for with just a few simple questions. Kat cheerily answered my inquiries about reservations, gluten-free options and takeout services when I phoned in the other day.

Other callers get agitated, raise their voice and hang up the phone. These people, Leibowitz said, grow impatient the moment they realize Kat is an artificial intelligence chatbot.

While Kat is a nuisan

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