A link has been sent to your friend's email address. A link has been posted to your Facebook feed.

"Uhm," said the female voice. "Can I book a table for tomorrow?" The question came not from a person, but software called Duplex developed by Google to make phone calls. Before the end of the year, some of the company's users will be able to direct the bot to call restaurants and book tables on their behalf. In a demonstration last week, Duplex smartly handled questions from a Google employee playing the role of restaurant worker about details such as the size of the party and the name to hold the table under.

Google just announced the third generation of its Pixel-branded smartphone, the Google Pixel 3. Keeping consistent with previous Pixel phone releases, there are two versions of the new phone: the regular-size Pixel 3 and the larger Pixel 3 XL. Both phones have new glass backs. They have bigger displays, better cameras, and updated processors. And they're shipping with a new mobile security chip--the same kind of chip that Google uses to protect the information flowing through its data centers. But Google's hardware products are never as much about hardware as they are about software.

Smart displays are the new smart speakers. A day after Facebook revealed Portal, a WiFi-connected video-chatting device for your home, Google has announced Home Hub, a new 7-inch smart screen that acts as a voice-controlled conduit for the Google Assistant. It's Google's first smart home gadget that's comprised largely of a touchscreen display, after having launched three different display-free smart speakers over the past couple years. The Home Hub is also part of Google's larger strategy to make its virtual assistant infinitely more useful, and also, to get its tech into every facet of your life that it can. Both Google and Facebook's connected displays are coming on the heels of Amazon's second-generation Echo Show, another smart display that's equipped with Alexa and displays snippets of information.

Yes, those leaks of Google making its own smart display were true. The company has unveiled the Home Hub, which melds an Assistant-equipped smart speaker with a 7-inch touchscreen display. As with other smart displays, you can use to both get visual feedback for searches (such as the weather or recipes) as well as finding photos and videos. However, it does have a few stand-out features of its own -- including things that are missing. Google is clearly aware of privacy issues and wants you to feel comfortable putting a Home Hub in your bedroom and other sensitive areas, even if it means missing out on video chat.

To date, using Google Assistant to control your lighting away from your phone has typically meant shopping for both a smart speaker and bulbs with a hub serving as a go-between, such as Philips' Hue line. You won't have to spend quite so much cash going forward, because GE has unveiled the first Made-for-Google lightbulbs, and they don't require a hub at all. It's updating its C by GE lineup to automatically pair with any Google Home speaker through Bluetooth and show up in the Home app, making Assistant control almost as simple as screwing in the lights. You can still use Assistant on your phone, of course, and existing C by GE owners don't have to replace their illumination. Every bulb should have support by October 22nd.

Sure, Google's new Home Hub wasn't a secret today -- but I was still surprised at just how tiny the device is in real life. I imagined a tablet-sized screen perched on top of something resembling the giant Google Home Max, but I couldn't have been more wrong if I tried. The Home Hub is positively dainty -- thin, light and unobtrusive. The photo below with my iPhone 8 Plus next to the Home Hub should give you an idea just how small this device is. It still feels like a Google Home product, with the same acoustically transparent fabric found on the Home Mini and Max.

Google has unveiled a slew of new hardware including its $799 (£739) Pixel 3 phones, a new $599 (£549) tablet called Pixel Slate and a $149 (£139) smart speaker with a screen called Home Hub. The firm has pledged to build AI into its entire range at a New York event where Google's Rick Osterloh unveiled the new products, designed to take aim at Apple, Samsung and Amazon. Its new Pixel 3 handset includes AI features that allow it to answer calls itself, weeding out robocalls and transcribing messages if a user is busy, alongside a wide angle'superselfie' lens. Google's new range: The firm unveiled the Home Hub, Pixel Slate and Pixel 3 at a New York event. New handset starts at $799 (£739) for the Pixel and $899 (£869) for the XL and come in three colors - just black, clearly white, and not pink.

As a female founder, I've always been keen to showcase diversity in the vastly male-dominated technology world. Since starting the RE•WORK journey five years ago, we've hosted more than 10 events focusing on women working in AI. As today is Ada Lovelace Day is today, I thought it was only appropriate to take a look at some of the leading female minds in AI from across the globe. Known as the first computer programmer in history Ada Lovelace and her visionary approach to computer science built the foundation for the development of computers as we know it today leading us to an era of social and technological change. Although her work didn't get noticed until a century after she died her contributions to computer science will always be remembered.

Unless you've dug deep into the settings menu for Google Home, you might not know about the smart speaker's most powerful feature. It's called Routines, and it allows you to execute multiple actions with a single voice command. For example, you can have Google Assistant announce the weather, a personalized traffic report, and news updates while you get ready for work, or have it dim your smart light bulbs and play some relaxing music a few minutes before bedtime. These routines even work with the Google Assistant app on iOS and Android--no smart speaker required. You can also schedule Routines to run at specific times without voice commands, effectively turning a Google Home speaker into a high-tech alarm clock that can wake you up with music, information, and smart home automations.