Smart assistants are designed to tackle a whole host of everyday tasks, but some users are unhappy that this seems to include taking a stand on political issues. Amazon's Alexa has come under fire on social media thanks to the AI-powered speaker's thoughts on a number of hot button topics. Some have branded Alexa a'social justice warrior' because of her responses to questions on subjects ranging from feminism to the Black Lives Matter movement. Smart assistants are designed to tackle a whole host of everyday tasks but some users are unhappy that this seems to include taking a stand on political issues. Amazon's Alexa has come under fire thanks to the AI powered speaker's thoughts on a number of hot button topics The response has been particularly vociferous among the alt-right community on social media.

As Amazon's Alexa and Apple's Siri battle for dominance in hotel rooms, we are entering a new era of efficient communication and collaboration in travel. However, the most significant opportunities to transform the travel industry are around the widespread adoption of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. As the digital transformation gathers pace, it's clear that the travel industry is ripe for disruption. Upon entering an airport, we are immediately greeted with legacy friction points. Long check-in lines, passport control and a lack of communication are just the beginning of a series of frustrations that occur before boarding a flight.

Marketing automation and advertising technologies are often presented as the silver bullet to all your marketing needs. However, the reality is often disappointing, as messaging is targeted at predefined segments and sets of rules, falling short of actual individual user needs and wants. This isn't true personalization, as it doesn't scale to the individual, and it isn't capable of predicting the context, needs, behavior (or aberrations in behavior) of a single human being. Fortunately, with the rise of sophisticated artificial intelligence capabilities, particularly machine learning, this can all change. We're already seeing some of the more advanced players move away from formulaic segment-based messaging towards a more truly personalized way of marketing.

For many years, the main goal of the Netflix personalized recommendation system has been to get the right titles in front each of our members at the right time. With a catalog spanning thousands of titles and a diverse member base spanning over a hundred million accounts, recommending the titles that are just right for each member is crucial. But the job of recommendation does not end there. Why should you care about any particular title we recommend? What can we say about a new and unfamiliar title that will pique your interest? How do we convince you that a title is worth watching? Answering these questions is critical in helping our members discover great content, especially for unfamiliar titles.

Artificial Intelligence From The Terminator to Blade Runner, pop culture has always leaned towards a chilling depiction of artificial intelligence (AI) and our future with AI at the helm. Recent headlines about Facebook panicking because their AI bots developed a language of their own have us hitting the alarm button once again. Should we really feel unsettled with an AI future? News flash: that future is here. If you ask Siri, the helpful assistant who magically lives inside your phone, to read text messages and emails to you, find the nearest pizza place or call your mother for you, then you've made AI a part of your everyday life. Even current weather forecasting systems, spam filtering programs, and Google's search engine – among so many other practical applications – are AI-powered. Now, artificial intelligence doesn't seem that alarming, right? AI refers to machine intelligence or a machine's ability to replicate the cognitive functions of a human being. It has the ability to learn and solve problems. In computer science, these machines are aptly called "intelligent agents" or bots. Not all AI are alike.

Some tech trends fizzle out and die a quiet death, while others are so significant that they transform our world and how we live in it. Here are the top nine tech mega-trends that I believe will define 2018 and beyond. From chatting to friends in a messaging app or buying a coffee, to tapping in and out with an Oyster card or streaming music, today almost everything we do leaves a trail of data breadcrumbs. And this increasing datafication of our world has led to an unprecedented explosion in data. Just in the average minute, Facebook receives 900,000 logins, more than 450,000 Tweets are posted, and 156 million emails and 15 million texts are sent.With numbers like that, it's no wonder we're essentially doubling the amount of data created in the world roughly every two years.

Many, perhaps most, online businesses now offer "live chat" as a customer service option. Rather than calling or emailing with your support questions, live chat means you can speak to a customer service rep via instant messaging. This option is convenient and easy, and customers like it: live chat has the highest reported satisfaction rating (73%) of any customer service channel. It's part of a wider trend known as conversational commerce that's set to transform the world of digital commerce in the years to come. The term "conversational commerce" was popularized by Chris Messina, then of Uber, in a 2015 post on Medium.com

Microsoft's Cortana refuses to sit idly by as Amazon's Alexa hogs all the skills. Even though the two digital helpers are best buds (by way of their upcoming partnership), Cortana is feeling competitive. The AI can now connect to your Gmail account via Windows 10, allowing it to access multiple calendars, contacts, and -- of course -- mail, as spotted by Windows Central. Along with PC access, that support also extends to the Cortana-integrated Harmon Kardon Invoke smart speaker. And, Cortana apps on iOS and Android will also benefit from Google Calendar info.

My Amazon Echo Look review can help you to make a decision if you're not sure if this is a creep or a keep. Echo Look is Amazon's newest IoT gadget and at this time you have to request an invitation which you can do here: Amazon Echo Look My general view on the internet of things can be found in this article on my Entertainment Blog: I heard it from your freezer? A friend of mine is crazy for gadgets. She is a selfie-lover and lives on Instagram. Can you imagine how excited she is right now? Echo Look is a connected device that in addition to the regular Amazon Echo features can also take pictures and record video.

The acquisition gives Apple ownership of an app that helps users identify unfamiliar songs. Users are often directed to listen to those songs at Apple Music or Spotify, helping those services possibly reach new subscribers. Such referrals could help Apple boost the number of subscribers to its streaming-music service from its current 30 million. Spotify AB says its service has 60 million paid subscribers. Shazam, which made its debut as an app in 2008, also gives Apple access to extensive data and insight on people's musical interests.