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The future of an AI-dominated landscape is approaching fast, even accelerating. Some might say it is already here: Voice recognition applications as demonstrated by Apple's Siri, Google's Assistant, Microsoft's Cortana and Amazon's low-latency Alexa are clear examples of AI in use today. Google is the leader of the pack when it comes to AI: search, translation, self-driving car technology, traffic predictions, and even picking the best photos from your vacation and making a video for you. Meanwhile Microsoft, IBM, Amazon and others are not far behind. My own company works with AI on a smaller scale, applying big data to content marketing applications.

Every self-respecting hipster in America will soon be eating this Moneyish - Features, essays...

I'm a huge fan of the original "Alien" franchise, largely because of Sigourney Weaver's performance and the crucial part technology plays in its lore. Not only does this tech allow humans to traverse immense distances to reach alien-infested worlds, but it provides them with androids: perfect robotic assistants so advanced that it's extremely difficult to distinguish them from human crew. In fact, they're superior to their human companions in many aspects, from their superhuman strength to their refined motor skills. As a part of promoting the upcoming sci-fi horror film "Alien: Covenant," (in theaters May 19), 21st Century Fox unit FOX, 1.34% Twentieth Century Fox released its branded short film "Meet Walter," starring Michael Fassbender. It introduces Walter, the latest synthetic android, with intelligence powered by AMD's AMD, -0.85% Ryzen and Radeon processors and manufactured by the film's fictional corporation, Weyland-Yutani.

Robots are getting smarter, and, if you listen to high-ranking digital execs at Coca-Cola and other major brands, they're coming for your advertising jobs. No one knows that better than the tech geeks at Team One's newly launched AI Lab, who are vowing to stay ahead of the machine-learning curve by surrounding themselves with all things futuristic in a stylish nook of the agency's cavernous Playa Vista, Calif., headquarters. The lab, a scaled-down re-creation of a smart home designed to look like a midcentury modern crash pad, is outfitted with Google Home, Amazon Echo, Philips Hue and a trunk full of cognitive toys. "It's a dedicated space to experiment and brainstorm," said Alastair Green, executive creative director, digital, who launched the agency's tricked-out, gadget-heavy VR Lab onsite last year. "We want to spark ideas and create better work with AI. And to answer the brands' question: 'What's the business case for it?'"

When you ask Siri for directions, peruse Netflix's recommendations or get a fraud alert from your bank, these interactions are led by computer systems using large amounts of data to predict your needs. The market is only going to grow. By 2020, the research firm IDC predicts that AI will help drive worldwide revenues to over $47 billion, up from $8 billion in 2016. Still, Coursera co-founder ANDREW NG, adjunct professor of computer science, says fears that AI will replace humans are misplaced: "Despite all the hype and excitement about AI, it's still extremely limited today relative to what human intelligence is." Ng, who is chief scientist at Baidu Research, spoke to the Graduate School of Business community as part of a series presented by the Stanford MSx Program, which offers experienced leaders a one-year, full-time learning experience.

U.S. consumers who plan to buy the all-new LG G6 will now have no reason to think twice about making the purchase. LG is offering a special preorder gift to those who will preorder its newest flagship phone, and it's none other than the Google Home smart speaker. Just this Wednesday, TechnoBuffalo exclusively received word form the South Korea tech company that as part of its promotions for the G6, anyone who will preorder the device will also get a Google Home. That means U.S. consumers can bring home two premium devices with built-in Google Assistant. The offer, called the LG G6 Google Home National Promotion, is already live.

Alexa, Amazon's all-knowing and doing voice assistant can now help people vacuum, thanks to a partnership between the Seattle-based retail giant and iRobot, a maker of consumer robots. Bedford, Mass.-based iRobot announced updates for the iRobot HOME App on both iOS and Android to continue integrating its line of Roomba-connected vacuums to the smart home, integrating Amazon Alexa and its voice control into the app. "iRobot is aggressively pursuing opportunities within the connected home to improve our customers' experience with our cleaning robots," said Colin Angle, chairman and CEO of iRobot in a statement. In addition to adding voice control, the HOME App is getting new Clean Map reports that provide details about cleaning performance, including what part of the floor is the dirtiest, how much space was cleaned, time taken and more. Inside the iRobot HOME App, customers can start, stop and pause a cleaning job, using just their voice.

Announced this week, the TAG Heuer Connected Modular 45 is a circular smartwatch with a 1.39-inch touchscreen display. It's powered by an Intel Atom Z34XX processor and 4GB of memory. The watch will run Android Wear 2.0, the latest version of Google's wearable operating system. Although the Connected Modular 45 is being recognised for its Swiss design and blend of traditional and modern technology, one of its software features could be the most significant component. Intel is building a futuristic virtual assistant to sit on the watch, enabling owners to use their voice to ask questions and carry out commands.

One of Google Home's biggest strengths is its ability to fill our homes with music on command. All we need to do is say, "OK Google, play Shape of You," and it will dutifully comply, but if you don't know what you're in the mood to hear, the boundless options can be overwhelming. A new feature in the Google Home app is looking to help make it easier. Joining Watch and Discover, there's a new Listen tab in the Google Home app that is dedicated to finding just the right music at just the right time. As Google describes, the new section "shows you curated lists of ready-to-stream, personalized albums and playlists from your favorite music apps, like YouTube, Google Play Music, and Spotify. You'll also find compatible music and audio apps you already have on your phone or tablet, as well as a section to discover new apps to download."