In the world of marketing, brand anthropomorphism can be a powerful mechanism for connecting with consumers. It's the tactic of giving brand symbols people-like characteristics: Think of Tony the Tiger and the Michelin Man. Today some companies are taking brand anthropomorphism to a whole new level with sophisticated AI technologies. Thanks to the simplicity of their conversational interfaces, it's quite possible that customers will spend increasingly more time engaged with a company's AI than with any other interface, including the firm's own employees. And over time Siri, Alexa, and Cortana, and their individual "personalities," could become even more famous than their parent companies.

Two months ago, Facebook finally rolled out M, its AI-powered personal assistant, to the general public. Instead of the limited edition of M that would answer your every beck and call (it had a lot of human help), the public version of M has to be triggered with certain words. A few features at launch include suggesting stickers to use in conversations or prompting an Uber ride if M detects you need to get somewhere. Today, Facebook is adding even more M suggestions to the mix: a "save it for later" function, birthday wishes and call initiations. The save-for-later function is pretty self-explanatory.

The world around us is becoming increasingly automated, with many of us leaning on digital assistants such as Cortana, Echo and Siri to run our lives. Before too long it is highly likely that our cars will be driverless, fridges will restock automatically and our homes will heat themselves. Recently, Westworld - the sci-fi thriller about a technologically advanced, Western-themed amusement park populated by androids that malfunction and begin killing the human visitors - became the biggest watched show of all time on Sky Atlantic. Could this fiction be closer to reality than many of us would care to admit? Our recent study asked this question, and for almost two-thirds of respondents, the answer is yes.

See how Apple's iPhone ignited the evolution of mobile devices. Analysts are expecting a big overhaul and blockbuster sales for the next iPhone. SAN FRANCISCO -- The most significant update to the iPhone in three years promises not only to upend the smartphone market but Apple's financial results for several quarters. On the heels of the iPhone's 10th anniversary this week, and before Apple unveils its expected new models in September, analysts expect flat year-over-year iPhone sales as consumers wait for the revamped phones. After that, however, they expect record-setting sales, dwarfing the success of the wildly popular iPhone 6. Angelo Zino, a senior equity analyst at CFRA, predicts record iPhone shipments of 241.5 million in the 12 months following the iPhone 8 launch -- smashing the previous high, set by iPhone 6, following its introduction in late 2014.

Nintendo is reviving the SNES, Amazon's Echo with a screen is here and we look at how iOS 11 is shaping up. The mini console will include the never-before-released'Star Fox 2.' The SNES Classic is real, arrives on September 29 for $80 The delicious rumors are true: Nintendo is gearing up to launch the SNES Classic, a miniaturized version of the glorious original Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Here's what Nintendo needs to do to make the SNES Classic great Being virtually sold out everywhere wasn't the only issue we had with the NES Classic last year.

Good news, Google Home owners: your smart speaker is now ready to get to know your family. The search giant has confirmed that UK Homes now support up to six users, allowing members of your household to train Google's Assistant to recognize their voices. It also means that their music playlists, schedules and appointments can be synced, ensuring everyone gets more use out of the tiny white speaker. The feature is actually pretty easy to set up. Simply make sure that you have the latest version of the Google Home app on your smartphone (iOS or Android) and then find the card that says "multi-user is available."

When Apple announced plans earlier this year to expand its engineering operation in Seattle, the company said it would be looking for "the best people who are excited about AI and machine learning." Job listings on the tech giant's website reveal just who Apple hopes to attract on its Siri Advanced Development team. Business Insider pointed at the listings on Monday, saying that Apple was making a move on Amazon's home turf to go after Siri talent in the land of Alexa -- the voice-activated assistant on devices such as the Echo and Dot. One job, posted back in January, is for a software engineer, and the other, posted on May 23, is for a speech scientist/engineer. A description at the bottom of both doesn't pull any punches when it comes to regarding the work as groundbreaking and Siri as the original AI.

If you've got multiple Amazon Echo devices throughout your home, you'll soon be able to use them as a connected intercom. Amazon just launched the feature today across the original Echo, Echo Dot and its new screen-toting Echo Show. The company is rolling out the feature over the next few days, but be sure to update your Alexa app to access it. We haven't had a chance to test out the intercom feature yet, but it seems pretty straightforward.

Here's a sentence I never expected to write: Drag and drop changes everything. Today, Apple releases the public beta of iOS 11, the latest version of the operating system driving the world's iPhones and iPads. These early releases are SOP and help Cupertino ensure its software is fully baked before launch. Anyone with a taste for risk and patience for bugginess can install iOS 11 now, ahead of its actual release this fall. I've been using iOS 11 on a new 10.5-inch iPad for the better part of a week. Don't expect shocking redesigns or massive overhauls; even the completely remodeled App Store looks like Apple News and Apple Music, and feels instantly familiar.

The following article was inspired by futurist John Smart's series on the future of personal AI assistants, aka Sims. In a paraphrase of futurist Stewart Brand he notes, "We are gaining superpowers, so we better get good at using them." The world has filled up with digital clutter, millions of apps, websites, news sources, videos, messaging programs and social media platforms. Technology was meant to make life easier, to organize and make sense of things, to free us from drudgery, not fill it with more crap we don't want. A race is going on between the tech giants to be the first to come up with the last app you will ever need.