Artificial Intelligence (AI) – the ability of machines to think for themselves – has been a topic long covered by Hollywood and one that conjures up concerning thoughts mostly driven by the likes of Skynet from the Terminator series, VIKI in iRobot, Ava from Ex Machina or Channel 4's biggest drama in 20 years, Humans. Yet some of the largest tech companies we've come to know and (mostly) love are gearing up to push our lives in this very direction. The full UK launch of Amazon Echo ( Alexa software) and the launch announcement of Google Home ( Assistant) puts products right in the centre of the so-called smart home – the first steps towards AI becoming an integral part of our lives. So what will this mean for users and businesses? And how will it change their technology and marketing needs in the shorter term?

Mobile phones fundamentally changed how marketers reach consumers, but it's not the only technology that's impacting customer engagement. Augmented reality(AR), Virtual Reality (VR), conversational interfaces and machine learning have emerged as new tools in the digital marketing toolbox. To understand how technology is changing branding and the customer experience, I interviewed Lee Applbaum, the Global Chief Marketing Officer of Patrón Spirits International AG. Patrón is widely heralded as the company that changed Tequila's public perception. Once relegated as the liquor of a college party gone wrong, tequila is now sold in upscale bars, restaurants and clubs.

Too many laptops, tablets and other mobile devices leads to congested WiFi airwaves. Q: I have horrible Wi-Fi in rooms of my house. A: A wireless network repeater is a great way to extend coverage, but it has to be placed in the right spot. Most routers spread signals in a circle. The closer you are to the router, the stronger the signal. As the circle spreads out, there is a sweet spot to put the repeater.

Both Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) are terms that evoke futuristic, sci-fi, and generally far-out imagery in us. But the truth is that AI and IoT are already our mundane reality and will continue to become prominent aspects of our lives in the near and far future. Chaney Ojinnaka, the founder, and CEO of VendorMach says in his recently published article that AI has been romanticized into this abstract concept conjuring images of robots doing our housework for us. But what do these terms really denote and what is their relation? Well, both concepts are strongly interrelated, and one can't really exist without the other.

The perceptual smart machine age: Smart machine technologies will be the most disruptive class of technologies over the next 10 years due to radical computational power, near-endless amounts of data, and unprecedented advances in deep neural networks that will allow organizations with smart machine technologies to harness data in order to adapt to new situations and solve problems that no one has encountered previously. Enterprises that are seeking leverage in this theme should consider the following technologies: Machine Learning, Virtual Personal Assistants, Cognitive Expert Advisors, Smart Data Discovery, Smart Workspace, Conversational User Interfaces, Smart Robots, Natural-Language Question Answering, Personal Analytics, Enterprise Taxonomy and Ontology Management.

Within a decade, our living spaces will be enhanced by a host of new devices and technologies, performing a range of household functions and redefining what it means to feel at home. The promise of devices that not only meet our household needs but anticipate them as well has been around for decades. To date, that promise remains largely unfulfilled. Advances such as the Nest thermostat by Alphabet (parent company to Google) and Amazon's Alexa personal assistant are notable, but the home-technology market as a whole remains fragmented, and the potential for a truly smart home is still unrealized. A tipping point may be at hand.

Grimm After lying dormant for seven years, a new form of Wesen with a ferocious appetite emerges. Last Man Standing Eve (Kaitlyn Dever) surprises Mike and Vanessa (Tim Allen, Nancy Travis) with her decision about which college she wants to attend in this new episode of the family comedy. Rosewood The investigation of a suspicious death in an empty high-rise draws Rosie and Villa (Morris Chestnut, Jaina Lee Ortiz) into the inner circle of a former child star who wants to make a comeback. Ginormous Food Host Josh Denny visits Nashville, where he finds a 17-pound chicken gyro sandwich. Dr. Ken Ken (Ken Jeong) allows his wife (Suzy Nakamura) to think he wrote a love poem for her, but it was actually written by Dave (Albert Tsai) for his girlfriend (guest star Zooey Jeong, Ken's real-life daughter).

These days it seems like you can't open a newspaper (OK, web browser) without coming across an article on artificial intelligence (AI). Publicized breakthroughs -- like Google AlphaGo's unprecedented victories over human Go champions -- have heralded the promise of a new golden age for AI. Add to that the personification of personal assistants in Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa, coupled with Salesforce's "resurrection" of Albert Einstein and the rampant proliferation of AI-related startups, and the AI buzz becomes more of a cacophonous clamor. To put it mildly, this is confusing for businesses, as leaders are trying to determine what is real and what is mere snake oil. Will AI achieve its transformational promise, or will it join the trash heap of over-hyped technologies?

Amazon launched a new website today to help brands and developers build applications, or skills, for Alexa. In other words, it's a good day to go voice-first. "Customers are interacting with technology in the most natural way possible – by talking," Amazon says. "Now is the time to create engaging experiences for your brand." Amazon's Alexa is a digital assistant that lives in Echo, a home appliance, and increasingly in other objects such as robots, toys, smartphones, and cars. It uses artificial intelligence and natural language processing, along with cloud-based connections to hundreds of devices, to help you get information, control your environment, and simplify your life.

The most fun part of Hater is definitely swiping through the offerings of items you either hate or like. The seemingly endless list include things like "biting ice cream" or "Facebook stalking." There's a fair amount of political items, like "Vladimir Putin" and "Build the Wall," but they're sprinkled amidst lighthearted things like "The Bachelor," "Twitter" and "Staying Up Late." There are also a handful of sexual things featured, like "69," "The Missionary Position," and "Butt Selfies."