"YOU are a developer and you've just spent two weeks writing this amazing app. Your dream is to get it in front of every iPhone user." That was how Steve Jobs, then Apple's boss, introduced an online shop for smartphone apps eight years ago. At first few paid it much heed, but it launched one of the fastest growing software markets ever. Since then, over 100 billion apps have been downloaded, generating 40 billion in revenues for developers and billions more in subscriptions and other fees.

Amazon (AMZN - Get Report) may be looking to up its artificial intelligence game, according to a new report from Bloomberg, which claims that the e-commerce giant quietly bought a startup called Orbeus. Orbeus developed technology that uses artificial intelligence to identify content in photos, and Bloomberg's source claims that Amazon acquired the startup in the fall of 2015. While neither company confirmed the report, Bloomberg noted that the Orbeus domain name is now owned by Amazon Hostmaster. And Orbeus' website currently says, "ReKognition API is no longer taking new customers ... But we're up to new/exciting things." It's unclear what Amazon's exact plans for Orbeus' technology are, but there are several ways it could be helpful.

Twitter was not always an advertising business, and it doesn't want to limit itself to promoted tweets. Under second-time CEO Jack Dorsey, the company has been reinvigorating its foundation as a real-time data service, and the revenue is following. Since Dorsey arrived last summer, he has been cultivating relationships with developers -- particularly those who pay for Twitter's data. In February, Dorsey listed developers as his fifth priority, behind the more obvious need to address the core service, live video, creators and safety. But interestingly, this fifth priority is the one that's already been bringing in more cash and continues to make Twitter relevant.

On this blog, we have been often preaching how Machine Learning has been expanding out of its historic habitat of academics and R&D labs into all kinds of industries by powering smart applications. One of the reflections of this trend can be seen in the number of conferences and events that are bringing together real life practitioners and business leaders that are looking for ways to incorporate Machine Learning in their core activities. This year we are witnessing the addition of Machine Learning Prague to that growing event list as possibly the first conference of its kind in Eastern Europe. We are also proud to announce BigML's active participation at the event that will take place on April 23–24, 2016. In the organizers' words "This is not another academic conference. Our goal is to foster discussion between machine learning practitioners and all people who are interested in applications of modern trends in artificial intelligence. You can look forward to inspiring people, algorithms, data, applications, workshops and a lot of fun during both days as well as at the afterparty."

A combined project by Microsoft, the Rembrandt House Museum, advertising firm J Walter Thompson Amsterdam, and strangely, ING Bank has yielded a 148 million pixel portrait generated by a computer. Developers of The Next Rembrandt say a series of complex algorithms were used to extract the key features of Rembrandt's work. Given the companies involved, the project smacks of an advertising stunt, but the resulting printed image does raise interesting questions about the quality of future forgeries. Under the project, all 346 Rembrandt paintings were analyzed using 3D scans to pinpoint common techniques and themes used by the 17th century artist. READ MORE: Lawnmower explodes during crazy backyard'art' experiment (VIDEO) "The first step was to study the works of Rembrandt in order to create an extensive database," explains Emmanuel Flores, director of technology at J Walter Thompson Amsterdam.

If you're the kind of person who really likes chatting with the mail carrier, Dispatch won't be your favorite startup. That's because the four-person South San Francisco company is working on technology that could replace postal workers; UPS and FedEx drivers; Instacart couriers; and anyone else who gets paid to bring you stuff. Instead, you might be dealing with a 3-foot-tall, 150-pound, battery-powered roving robot that looks like a little dumpster on wheels. Called Carry, the device uses artificial intelligence, five cameras and a laser to navigate on sidewalks around pedestrians, flaming hoverboards and any other obstacles to get packages to your door. The only places you'll find Carry today are on two California college campuses, where it's still being tested.

Life and intelligence are the natural consequence of a particular pattern of ordered complexity. The medium does not matter; carbon atoms, electrons, light, even symbols. Once any pattern reaches this ordered complexity, it becomes a living being – then a thinking entity. While this ordered complexity remains as yet un-defined by higher mathematics, it can be detected via a set of unique elements. These elements define certain obvious properties of the Agent, and thus can be identified and measured in a controlled way and using a scientific method.

Artificial intelligence is becoming a buzz word among technology companies, and rather than growing services internally, enterprises are acquiring startups and other companies with expertise in the field. Several of the tech industry's biggest players have been investing in AI in recent months, extolling the potential of AI to help scientists process large data sets and understand cause and effect relationships. In October, for example, Apple purchased VocalIQ, a United Kingdom-based startup that worked to improve the way computers understand natural language. Salesforce has made a number of AI-related purchases recently. In March, it acquired PredictionIO and before that, it bought RelateIQ and smart calendar app Tempo AI.

On-demand delivery is something consumers have come to expect. With that in mind, startup Dispatch is building a fleet of autonomous delivery vehicles designed for sidewalks and bike paths. Today, the company announced a 2 million seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz's Chris Dixon with participation from Charles Hudson of Precursor Ventures and others. "The need for convenient low cost delivery is widespread," Dispatch co-founder Uriah Baalke told me. "Our goal is to fulfill that demand and build a system at scale that can scale and that can operate in all these locales efficiently."

For years, 3D printing has been hailed as an emerging technology likely to transform our lives. Researchers at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory have taken the nascent field to a new level with the creation of 3D printed robots made of both solids and liquids. Previously, 3D printing had only been done with solid materials. Printing with both materials allows for the faster creation of complex designs, lessening the time and expense required to make robots. Inexpensive robots could make remote exploration -- or any activity where a robot is used -- more affordable, bringing broad implications for the utility of robots.