In recent months there was much talk of the arrival of artificial intelligence to cell phones. In fact, it is the feature that most companies highlight when describing their products. LG, for example, announced that it would launch a new version of its LG V30 that will incorporate artificial intelligence to its camera, as well as other optimizations that come hand in hand with Google Assistant. Last year Huawei announced, with all pomp, the arrival of its chip Kirin 970, which integrates a unit of neuronal processing and that is part of Mate 10, and Apple boasted the neuronal engine of A11 Bionic, present in the iPhone 8, 8 Plus and X. Samsung, meanwhile, announced its Exynos 9810 chip, which is also based on neural networks as Snapdragon 845 of Qualcomm. The Galaxy S9 and S9 will include one of these last two processors, depending on the country where it is marketed.

Add in the latest smart wireless headphones--Apple's expected next-generation AirPods or competing ones from Bose or Shure--along with talking microwave ovens and TVs from Samsung, LG and others, and anyone at home or in an open-plan office could soon be within earshot of hundreds of microphones. Most of them will be listening for a wake word like "Alexa," "Hey Siri," or "OK Google," just as our phones and smart assistants do now. The roadmaps of tech giants and startups alike show how sound is poised to become the first ubiquitous connection between users and the artificial-intelligence hive mind the internet is becoming. Driving this change are massive volumes of components, originally designed for smartphones and other mobile devices, that have dropped in price and grown in functionality over the past decade. For a hundred years, microphones consisted of a relatively large membrane whose vibrations were converted to electrical impulses.

As Amazon's gadgets seem to go from strength to strength, I sat down with David Limp, the senior vice president of devices and services at Amazon, to learn about the Alexa's next steps and the company's future plans. However, since one of the big successes of the company's devices division has been the Kindle ebook reader, I began by asking David Limp about that. "We've just got done with another Prime Day, which was a record day. On Kindle, which is coming up on its 10-year anniversary this November, a big milestone for us, it was the best-selling day in the history of Kindle. So, 10 years and you know if you were to listen to the pundits talk, they say nobody's buying readers anymore. But I can assure you lots of people are. And we're really excited that people still love dedicated readers and we're going to continue inventing there."

If you've been eyeing Acer's Alexa-enabled laptops, you may want to check out the company's deals on Amazon for Prime subscribers. The manufacturer has slashed $50 off all available models' prices, which really isn't that much -- good thing Acer is also giving out a free Echo Dot speaker with every purchase. These laptops come built-in with Amazon's voice assistant, and you can ask it questions and access skills like you would on one of the tech giant's Echo speakers. The available models include some of the first Alexa-equipped laptops on the market, including convertibles like the Acer Nitro 5 Spin made for students and casual gamers. There's also the Spin 5, another convertible that has various configurations, including different display sizes and processors.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is redefining the face of the business process both online and offline. AI through automated systems are programmed to replicate human functions which are in charge of official communications answering phone calls, emails and social comments to engaging website visitors on chats. AI is changing the overall face of customer interaction, according to the Business Insider and Gartner, 85% of business communication by 2020 will be handled by AI without any human involvement. If you thought IT organizations are the only digging gold out of AI, think again. AI is impacting every industry, disrupting business or giving them thumbs up on the competition.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an important and evolving concept that is having significant impact within the Customer Experience industry -- and it's a topic that is being talked about on a seemingly daily basis at this point. But is AI really ready for prime time in customer care? I sat down with Michael Johnston, Director of Research and Innovation at Interactions, to get answers to some questions that are frequently asked about AI and Machine Learning as they apply to customer care. Artificial Intelligence refers to the capability of a machine to imitate intelligent human behavior. Put another way, AI technologies are algorithms that attempt to mimic things that humans do.

You're settling into your window seat, bound for a summer vacation, when the flight attendant wishes you a happy birthday or commiserates about the lousy weather that delayed the last leg of your trip. It might feel like the flight crew has been scouring your recent social media posts, but at some airlines, that wouldn't be necessary. Carriers like United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines are giving gate agents and flight attendants access to more customer data in hopes of giving passengers more personalized service. Still, there's only so much a birthday greeting can do to make up for a lost bag or late arrival, particularly when airlines want to steer clear of conversations that feel too personal. While in-cabin recognition might be the most visible way airlines are working to do more with the troves of data they collect, behind-the-scenes efforts to mine stats on everything from collisions between airport vehicles to turbulence touch almost every piece of a passenger's trip.

Today, when asked about artificial intelligence (AI), many people start painting science fiction inspired images of machine-ruled futures and robots completing manual tasks for human beings. To them, AI is only a concept, something that's going to happen tomorrow. In reality, artificial intelligence is already part of our lives. We use AI every day. Is 2018 The Year That The AI Revolution Goes Mainstream?

Jefferson Graham shows the many options for finding audio podcasts to listen to, from apps to connected speakers, TV and the car, on #TalkingTech. In July, we've covered everything from how to get the beat deals on Amazon Prime Day to tips on creating and publishing an e-book and we previewed the new website with Netflix's Phil Rosenthall on Talking Tech, USA TODAY's daily, seven-days-a-week podcast. You can listen to Talking Tech on Stitcher, Apple or Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy online audio. Talking Tech offers the latest tech news updates, gadget reviews, opinion on tech trends and interviews with insiders. Here are the July Talking Tech episodes.

Apple has announced some significant upgrades to the MacBook Pro. On Thursday, the iPhone maker debuted refreshed 13-inch and 15-inch models that sport more powerful processors, improved displays and new keyboards. For the first time, Apple has integrated both laptops with always-on Siri voice activation. The new MacBook Pro laptops are available starting today and start at $1,799 for the 13-inch with a Touch Bar and $2,399 for the 15-inch with a Touch Bar. On Thursday, Apple debuted refreshed 13-inch and 15-inch models that sport more powerful processors, improved displays and new keyboards.