AI Clouds: Lego blocking cloud based services with developer kits, large general purpose AI companies are enabling developers to deploy algorithms via SDKs within their cloud hosted platforms. From Microsoft Azure AI platform all the way to Amazon's AWS AI Offerings, these organizations provide pre-trained models, GPUs and storage that are necessary for more effective continuous deployment, testing and quality assurance (QA). AI Languages: Beyond software applications to onboard users onto AI platforms, companies are standardizing new languages to familiarize developers to continually build using their libraries. Uber's AI Labs, for example, released their own probabilistic python offshoot programming language, Pyro. Wit.ai is another language for developers to build cross device applications.

It's no secret that when it comes to voice assistants, Siri is often cited as one of the worst. Even though Apple introduced it years before Amazon and Google, their digital rivals -- Alexa and Google Assistant -- have since bested Siri in both features and performance. That's mostly because Amazon and Google have spent years pouring millions of dollars worth of research into artificial intelligence, making their assistants smarter and more capable over time. Apple is trying to catch up. Not only is it beefing up its phones with "neural engine" chips to power AI efforts like augmented reality and machine learning, it's also building out its Siri team.

Researchers have created a wearable device that can read people's minds when they use an internal voice, allowing them to control devices and ask queries without speaking. The device, called AlterEgo, can transcribe words that wearers verbalise internally but do not say out loud, using electrodes attached to the skin. "Our idea was: could we have a computing platform that's more internal, that melds human and machine in some ways and that feels like an internal extension of our own cognition?" said Arnav Kapur, who led the development of the system at MIT's Media Lab. Kapur describes the headset as an "intelligence-augmentation" or IA device, and was presented at the Association for Computing Machinery's Intelligent User Interface conference in Tokyo. It is worn around the jaw and chin, clipped over the top of the ear to hold it in place.

Apple's (AAPL) hiring of Google's former head of search technology and artificial intelligence is the latest sign that AI is becoming a major battleground for tech companies. Artificial intelligence and machine learning have become "a top 10 spending priority" for corporate chief information officers, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said in a note to clients Friday. Apple's recent hiring of AI expert John Giannandrea "reinforces this view," she said. "With the hiring of Mr. Giannandrea, who will report directly to Apple CEO Tim Cook, Apple is telling the world they are aiming to become a more serious player in the AI/machine learning industry," she said. Deployment and evaluations of AI and machine learning systems have steadily increased over the last year, Huberty said.

Many people assume that their iPhone's lock screen prevents any creepy strangers from spying on their notifications and personal information. But a troubling security flaw was identified that shows just how easy it is to get around those privacy configurations. In some versions of Apple's mobile operating system, Siri will still read your hidden notifications aloud even if your phone is locked. A Twitter user recently gave a first-hand account of how simple it is to get access to a stranger's intimate data without them knowing. A recently discovered security flaw shows that Siri will still read your hidden notifications aloud even if your phone is locked.

Amazon has been working on its voice-enabled virtual assistant, Alexa, for years. It's how the company's Fire TV, its Echo smart speakers, and other Amazon devices are able to answer our questions--and know what we want. While we know Alexa is always listening, how does she think? And how much of what she hears does she "remember?" He's been at Amazon since 2004 and has led the Alexa team since 2011. In our interview, we discussed how Alexa understands our commands, what he makes of users' growing concerns over privacy, and why Alexa was laughing so creepily for some users recently.

Now available, Apple's smart speaker has integrated Siri support, so wake it up and ask a question or give a command. You probably know about Siri's funny responses to questions like "What's the meaning of life?" or "Are you alive?" And you may have complained when the assistant stumbles or can't follow your question. Spoiler alert: This column won't show you how to make Siri fault-proof. But it will help you get more out of it, particularly when you're in situations where you couldn't or shouldn't be using your hands.

From digital assistants like Siri to Tesla's self-driving cars, artificial intelligence and deep learning (a type of machine learning) are churning out today's tech breakthroughs. As new innovations are released, more doors open up to leverage them in existing fields, like integrating facial recognition in iPhones or iOS apps. That said, taking the time to understand how these innovations operate is a smart move -- whether you plan to implement them as an app developer or merely use them at work. Learn the foundations of these groundbreaking fields with the Pay What You Want: AI & Deep Learning Bundle, which nets you a host of e-books and training courses for a price that you get to pick. Here's how the deal works: Simply pay what you want, and you'll instantly unlock one of the collection's ten resources.

Microsoft's digital assistants and chatbots are getting a lot chattier. Microsoft today unveiled the ability for bots to have "session-oriented" back and forth conversations with humans, instead of the single question, single answer format seen in most digital assistants today. Microsoft believes it is the first company to release this technology, known as Full-Duplex Voice Sense, which allows digital assistants and chatbots to talk and listen at the same time. Microsoft said the longest conversation so far under the new technology lasted more than four hours, with 1,600 back and forth turns between human and bot. In addition to the longer conversations, Microsoft's new voice technology doesn't require the user to say the wake word constantly and the bots can predict what humans will say next to keep the discussion moving.

The relationship between humans and machines has evolved since the first time man put a wheel on an axle. From the Industrial Revolution to today, technology has improved both business productivity and the lives of the general population. As artificial intelligence (AI)-enhanced apps and devices move into every area of our lives, the relationship moves from people interacting with products to products proactively interacting with people. While digital assistants like Amazon Echo, Cortana, Google Home and Siri use AI primarily for voice commands and connectivity, they are starting to learn based on past requests. As more advanced AI apps are added, the amount these assistants can actually assist will expand greatly.