No matter the language, the principles are still the same--customers should be the focus of every company. South American companies face the volatile world of instability and inflation, but they still show that focusing on customers can lead to success. Here are 10 of the most customer-focused companies in South America. Arcos Dorados is based in Brazil and is the world's largest independent McDonald's franchisee with stores in more than 20 Latin American countries. The brand focuses on "cooltura de servicio", or "service culture," and encourages each employee to provide personalized service to customers.

Even without a booth, Apple is looming large over CES. In a giant billboard that went up on the side of the Springhill Suites Marriott hotel near the Vegas strip late last week, Apple is touting the privacy features baked into the iPhone, telling people, "What happens on your iPhone, stays on your iPhone." It's a clever and effective ad that plays off the classic Vegas slogan. In an age of regular data breaches and scary hacks, privacy and security have become a really big deal. Apple has made privacy a major component of its iPhone sales pitch for years, so while the ad might not mention Google, Samsung, or Amazon, it's clearly aimed at trolling Apple's biggest rivals and their somewhat laissez-faire approach to privacy.

I recently attended a holiday potluck hosted by a tech-junkie friend who had decked out his one-bedroom apartment with smart speakers, smart lights, and small, infrared motion sensors that looked disconcertingly like cameras. Towards the end of the party, after one of the guests disappeared into the back of the apartment, another decided to play a prank. "Hey Google, turn off bathroom lights," he said quietly into a nearby sensor. A few seconds later we heard an exaggerated shriek. "Hey Google, turn lights red," my friend joined in, grinning.

Google has some news to go alongside its giant pavilion that dominates the lot outside the main halls of CES 2019. The company expects that, by the end of this month, its Google Assistant will be... assisting on one billion devices, across Android phones, iPhones, TVs, headphones, watches, smart speakers and smart displays. So, in the voice assistant stakes, how does this compare to Amazon? Well the retailer recently cheered that it has sold 100 million Alexa-connected devices across the world. Both companies haven't broken down exactly how that all distributes across, say, smart speakers, phones and the rest, but Google's proposition is a little bit to Amazon For Google, its voice assistant is a core part of Android, meaning it's on all recent smartphones -- even entry-level devices that run the lightweight Android Go OS.

Here is building some kind of in-car navigation system powered by Amazon's Alexa assistant. The new "one-stop solution for automakers," called Here Navigation On-Demand, will be sold to manufacturers as (shudder) software-as-a-service. In layman's terms, that means it will sit on top of existing infotainment platforms and operating systems. Details are light at the moment, but Here says it will be a truly "voice-first car navigation experience that keeps users focused on the road." We also know that the software will leverage Alexa Auto, the development kit that Amazon released last August, to give drivers personalized advice.

Part of Vizio's big news for CES 2019 is the reveal of SmartCast 3.0. This edition of its smart TV platform's big addition is support for Apple AirPlay 2, as well as enhancements for tie-ins with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. The new software is coming to all SmartCast TVs eventually, after a beta test in Q1 of this year before rolling out widely in Q2. The Apple integrations will support AirPlay features you've seen on Apple TV and various smart speakers including multiroom audio, screen mirroring and streaming music from users' iTunes library. At this point Vizio hasn't announced an iTunes app like Samsung that will work on its own to pull in TV shows and movies.

Simplehuman is one of those companies whose products are simple in appearance and form factor, but the practical uses of their items will make you want to take a look in the mirror and say "why don't I have this?" And speaking of mirrors, they have two new ones. Simplehuman has announced two new smart mirrors, the Sensor Mirror Hi-Fi and the Sensor Mirror Hi-Fi Assist. "We successfully designed our first generation of mirrors by creating the best, most color-correct view," said simplehuman CEO and Founder Frank Yang. "The new Sensor Mirror Hi-Fi and Sensor Mirror Hi-Fi Assist models dramatically raise the bar by combining our tru-lux light with superb audio to enhance your morning routine -- from makeup application to listening to your favorite music, our next generation of mirrors were developed to revolutionize your morning routine."

Welcome to your Monday morning! Engadget is reporting live from the world's biggest tech event, CES. We'll be here delivering all the biggest news from the likes of Google, Samsung, Sony and the rest. Expect liveblogs and three epic days of our live stage shows, which all culminates with the official Best of CES awards on Thursday at 8pm ET / 5pm PT. Welcome to your Monday morning!

For a company famous for its analog trash cans, soap dispensers and toilet plungers, Simplehuman is embracing a digital future. The company has returned to this particular consumer electronics show to show off a new pedestal mirror that includes Google's voice assistant. As well as Assistant integration, the mirror will pull double duty as a Bluetooth and AirPlay 2 speaker for your home. Simplehuman boasts that the device packs a "custom, Danish-designed 2.5-inch acoustic driver" to deliver room-filling sound. Walk toward the mirror, too, and the built-in tru-lux bulbs will automatically replicate daylight in the morning, but offer dusky hues in the evening. It's certainly been possible to get voice assistants baked into mirrors before, especially if you knew your way around a Raspberry Pi.

JBL made a splash with it's Android TV-powered Google Assistant soundbar back at Google I/O, but the company wasn't able to ship the speaker before the end of 2018. Despite opening up pre-orders and rumblings of anticipated ship dates in the fall, the Link Bar has yet to make it's official debut. JBL is chatting up the device this week at CES, and part of the details include an updated timeline for when you might be able to grab one: spring 2019. As a refresher, the JBL Link Bar doubles as an Android TV box with Google Assistant built-in for voice control of compatible devices around your home. Chromecast is also built-in, so you can stream music and video content directly from your phone with ease.