Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo said in a statement Tuesday that she is holding the company accountable because it is "unfairly demanding more money to complete an 8-year-old computer upgrade" and is "trying to double the price of this project." She referred to a 2013 pledge made by CEO Meg Whitman to devote more resources to get the project done in a way state residents deserved.

Social psychologists have long known that humans make snap judgements about each other based on nothing more than the way we look and, in particular, our faces. We use these judgements to determine whether a new acquaintance is trustworthy or clever or dominant or sociable or humorous and so on. These decisions may or may not be right and are by no means objective, but they are consistent. Given the same face in the same conditions, people tend to judge it in the same way. And that raises an interesting possibility.

DB: Imagine what the next 5 years will bring: The term "mobile computing" will eventually become a dated term, replaced by "ubiquitous computing" as the internet will be everywhere. These changes include the transportation we take on land, in the air, and at sea; the clothes and devices we wear, sensors at work, at home, in our environment, and (if we chose) in us for medical purposes as well. DB: Also right behind and coupled with the Internet of Everything: 3D mass fabricators enabling individuals to affordably "print" and modify at the molecular level tangible substances based on digital designs. Maker Faires around the world already exist showcasing the early stages of what 3D fabricators can do in the hands of artists, engineers, and hobbyists. As Co-Chair of the IEEE Committee focused on Artificial Intelligence and Innovative Policies, I firmly believe exponential changes like the era we're in offer great opportunities for society -- as well as great challenges.

J.K. Rowling's prequel to the Harry Potter series is set to hit theaters next week and Google wants to help you prepare by turning your phone into a magic wand. On an Android device, you can cast "spells" with an "OK Google" voice command. After you alert your phone with the magic phrase, follow it up with a command like "lumos" and "nox" to turn the flashlight on and off. You can also use "silencio" to mute any sounds and notifications. Sure, it's rather simple, but it's a neat way for Potter fans to get ready for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them ahead of next week's debut.

MIT Technology Review's EmTech conference is all about looking to the future of tech and what's more futuristic than artificial intelligence? If you are up to date with the latest news on AI, or maybe you've just watched a few episodes of HBO's Westworld, you might be wondering how soon your job will be replaced by a robot. But if the presentation at MIT's EmTech conference this year is any indication, while artificial intelligence is at an impressive point, we're still far off from robot domination. To emphasize that point, Dileep George, co-founder of Vicarious, an organization working on next-generation AI algorithms, showed video of robots falling over in silly situations in his presentation, Artificial Intelligence at Work. The footage not only got some laughs, it also highlighted the vast limitations of current robotics.

Entry Point: Data - Using Python's sci-packages to prepare data for Machine Learning tasks and other data analyses [IPython nb]

Since winning Jeopardy! in 2011, IBM's Watson has apparently found employment as a dress designer, a chef, and a movie director. The latest news is that IBM is doing deals with GM, Slack, and Pearson that will see Watson helping, respectively, with roadside assistance, business messaging, and education. Even if you follow developments in AI closely, though, it can be hard to keep track of all the things Watson can do. It raises a question: what is it, exactly? TV ads that portray Watson as some sort of super-smart Siri don't exactly help.

This article was posted by SmileJet on Dev Battles. She paints and writes poetry. She's also an artificial intelligence from the movie Her, which imagines how a juiced-up Siri will change our lives. Now, tech companies large and small are racing to make this a reality. You've heard the jargon: AI, machine learning, deep learning, neural networks, natural language processing.

Jefferson Graham reviews GoPro's new Karma drone, an affordable flying camera with stellar video quality. LOS ANGELES -- Welcome to the Drone Wars, where longtime action camera manufacturer GoPro has joined No. 1 drone manufacturer DJI with its own take on a flying camera. The bad: Karma is actually heavier than we are led to believe from marketing videos, (2.2 pounds vs. 1.6 for the new $750 DJI Mavic) and some of the cool operational drone features from the Mavic just aren't there in the Karma. That said, DJI knows drones, and GoPro knows photography. The Karma trumps the Mavic with a superior camera, but Mavic is the better drone.

While Sonos makes some decent speakers, many feel that its apps are lacklustre at best. If you fall into this camp, you'll be pleased to hear that Sonos hardware is now starting to play nice with Spotify Connect. If you sign up for the Sonos public beta, you'll be able to control your speakers from inside the Spotify app. That includes multi-speaker and multi-room setups -- change one or change the lot, it's your choice. If you have friends over that want to play DJ, they can also queue up songs and playlists from their own Spotify app, instead of downloading the Sonos equivalent.