Google doesn't want to limit its photographic prowess to its own phones -- it just released an initial batch of "appsperiments" that use the company's knack for computer vision and other technologies to test the boundaries of phone photography. Storyboard for Android is arguably the highlight. The app uses object recognition and style algorithms to automatically grab interesting frames from a video and drop them into comic-style layouts with appropriate filters. You could summarize an event just by recording one video, rather than remembering to take gobs of photos. The other experiments could be convenient, too.

Amazon's Echo devices are powered by its Alexa artificial intelligence. LOS ANGELES -- Hey, Alexa, which of the seven Echo speakers should I buy, and what's the difference between them? And OK Google, the new Home Mini is so affordable at $29 for the holidays. How does it stack up to the entry level Echo, Amazon's Dot? If you're shopping for a smart speaker, here's how to decide which model and brand fits your needs and some advice on what to do once you own one.

Apple on Monday confirmed it has bought Shazam, the music app that can identify a song by hearing just a snippet of it. The acquisition boosts Apple's position in the music world and advances its artificial intelligence efforts. Shazam, launched in 1999, claims that at least 1 billion people have downloaded its app and used it to identify songs at least 30 billion times. Its service was one of the first AI products to be used by a broad audience. As Apple faces other tech giants in this increasingly competitive arena, analysts say Shazam could add significant value not only with its own service but also by making Apple's AI products -- namely Siri -- smarter about music.

Don't watch this for the exciting drama or the well made story capturing human conflict. As stories go this is pretty bland. Because it was written by an Artificial Intelligence. A highly regarded filmmaker, Oscar Sharp, worked with technologist Ross Goodwin to build a system that that could write a screenplay. The system was fed hundreds of sci-fi screenplays and produced a script that was turned into the story shot here.

Do you remember the first time that you saw R2D2 and C3P0 from Star Wars? These two robots exhibited human-like behavior as they interacted with people and the world around them. How about when the whole world was subject to machine control in The Matrix? These movies, like many others, have their own depictions of what Artificial Intelligence looks like, and means to us as a society. The term Artificial Intelligence has been popularized in books and movies to depict futuristic settings where machines take over the world, or live with us side by side as if they were humans. But did you know that Artificial Intelligence is actually here with us, today?

Every BBC radio station and podcast is now accessible through Amazon's Alexa assistant. So if you have an Echo or Echo dot in your home (or any Alexa-enabled speaker, for that matter), you can now launch Radio 1, 6 Music, or an episode of Desert Island Discs with your voice. The new Alexa "skill" offers granular control too, including "play," "pause" and "resume." You can also skip back to the "previous" episode of a podcast at any time. It's not the first time the BBC has backed Alexa, however.

Following reports on Friday that Apple was planning to buy music recognition app Shazam, CNBC reports that Cupertino has confirmed the purchase. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but TechCrunch estimates the agreement to be worth around $400 million. The site was also the first to report news of the acquisition Friday afternoon. "We are thrilled that Shazam and its talented team will be joining Apple. Since the launch of the App Store, Shazam has consistently ranked as one of the most popular apps for iOS," Apple said in a statement to CNBC.

One of the greatest perks of connected speakers is waking up to whatever music you like, not just a buzzer or the radio. However, that hasn't been an option for Alexa-equipped devices like the Echo -- until today, that is. Amazon has added a feature to Alexa that lets you wake up to the music of your choice from one of several streaming services, including its own options and Spotify. To begin with, your criteria can be as broad or narrow as you like. You can name a song, playlist or genre, or ask to play any kind of music if you're not picky.

In fact, it's been a while since the song-identifying software squeezed its way into the iOS App Store's top 10. So, why has Apple confirmed it is "combining" its business with that of the smaller London company? It has not revealed the price it is paying, but the sum is rumoured to be as much as $400m (£300m), which would make it one of Apple's most expensive takeovers to date. The US technology giant also hasn't disclosed its motivations beyond saying that it has "exciting plans in store". But there are several reasons the deal may have appealed.

If you thought Sphero's original BB-8 app-enabled robot was a blast back in 2015, just wait'til you see their take on Star Wars' most beloved droid: R2-D2. MSRP; same price on Amazon and the Apple store) is here in advance of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, which continues the sci-fi saga's main storyline, and it's just as immediately impressive as BB-8. It'll cruise around your home with ease using the iPhone/iPad companion app, the head rotates and reacts just like the real droid in the movie, and it even has movie-perfect sound effects and little animation routines. R2-D2 is not alone this time around, either, as the First Order BB-9E ($149.95 MSRP; same price on Amazon and the Apple store) droid from the new movie--essentially an evil version of BB-8, it seems--has joined the Sphero crew.