Artificial intelligence that can understand and answer any work-related question it is asked has been made available in the UK for the first time. The computer software, called Starmind, uses machine learning to understand queries, then source answers from previous staff conversations on a subject or track down experts within the company who are able to help. Its creators refer to it as'brain technology', adding its aim is to become a central knowledge bank within any company, an instant database of information that can be accessed by anyone. AI software which understands and answers work-related questions has been made available in the UK. Starmind is an artificial intelligence software for the workplace, designed in Switzerland.

Siri and Cortana are helpful with answering questions and searching the web, but fall short when it comes to recognizing and anticipating someone's needs. Now researches have unveiled a new application that could be deemed a true virtual assistant for your smartphone. Called RedEye, this technology uses machine learning to see and hear what users are experiencing in order to provide them with specific information - like people they've seen or places they've been. Rice has unveiled a new application that could be deemed a true virtual assistant. Called RedEye, this technology uses machine learning to see and hear what users are experiencing to provide them with specific information -- like people they've seen or places they've been RedEye assists mobile CPU/GPU systems by replacing the image sensor, nearly halving the system energy consumption by moving convolutional processing from the digital domain in the analog domain.

Microsoft is adding its Cortana smart assistant to millions of Xbox One game consoles in a bid to take on Apple, Google and Amazon in the smart assistant market. The firm today launched the first test version of the smart assistant for beta users of its Xbox One, ahead of a full launch for it later this summer. It will allow users to talk to the assistant using either Kinect or a headset. The update, coming to all Xbox One consoles this summer, will allow users to access Microaoft's smart assistant simply by saying'Hey, Cortana'. Microsoft boss Satya Nadella touted the power of'conversational' computing at the company's annual Build conference for software developers in San Francisco earlier this year.

Humanoid robot'Pepper' will soon be taking orders in Pizza Hut locations across Asia. MasterCard announced this week that it is teaming up with SoftBanks Robotics and Pizza Hut Asia to launch a new commerce app for the customer service bot. Pepper will be able to make recommendations and complete transactions, and is expected to begin employment by the end of this year. Humanoid robot'Pepper' will soon be taking orders in Pizza Huts in Asia. MasterCard announced this week that it is teaming up with SoftBanks Robotics and Pizza Hut Asia to launch a new commerce app for the bot.

The personal data of nearly 70,000 OKCupid users has been put online for anyone to see – not by hackers, but researchers. The group scraped information from the dating site and uploaded a paper discussing their findings to an online forum that encourages researchers to share raw social science data. Although no first names were released, other information such as sexual turn-ons, orientation, user names and location were - giving enough clues to figure out their real identities. Personal data of nearly 70,000 OKCupid users has been leaked – not by hackers, but researchers. The information scraped about the site's members was username, age, gender, religious astrology, number of photos and more – a total of 36 variables.

Humans have been taking a beating from computers lately. The 4-1 defeat of Go grandmaster Lee Se-Dol by Google's AlphaGo artificial intelligence (AI) is only the latest in a string of pursuits in which technology has triumphed over humanity. Self-driving cars are already less accident-prone than human drivers, the TV quiz show Jeopardy! is a lost cause, and in chess humans have fallen so woefully behind computers that a recent international tournament was won by a mobile phone. Researchers from Western Sydney University two reasons why AIs are'our greatest threat. The first being they are trained with logic and heuristics.

Microsoft has officially acquired the makers of predictive keyboard mobile app SwiftKey. The London-based start-up behind the app has been brought into the Microsoft fold in a deal worth an estimated $250 million (£174m). Microsoft is believed to have a keen interest in the firm's artificial intelligence research, including its recently launched Neural Alpha app, which could make its Cortana assistant more accurate. The London-based start-up behind the SwiftKey predictive keyboard app (pictured) has been bought by Microsoft in a deal worth $250 million (£174m). The app is available in over 100 languages, including Arabic, Russian, Thai and Afrikaans, and predicts text as it learns from the user's swipes and key strokes SwiftKey was started by Cambridge graduates in 2008, launching its predictive auto-correcting keyboard app on Android in 2010 and iOS in 2014.

Microsoft is developing a last-gasp'iPhone killer' in its bid to take on Apple and Google. Its current Windows Phone devices have failed to attract buyers - but the firm thinks it has one last chance at success. The firm hopes its'Surface Phone' could become as popular as the Surface tablet. Its current Windows Phone devices have failed to attract buyers - but Microsoft thinks it has one last chance at success. 'We need some sort of spiritual equivalent on the phone side, that doesn't just feel like a phone for people who love Windows,' Microsoft's CMO Chris Capossela said.

Six months after Microsoft announced plans to bring Cortana to iOS, the digital concierge has officially started beta testing on Apple's platform. The software company has selected 2,000 iPhone users to participate in the testing of Cortana, which combines features from Siri and Google Now into one package. Six months after Microsoft announced plans to bring Cortana to iOS, the digital concierge has officially started beta testing on Apple's platform. The software company has selected 2,000 iPhone users to participate in the testing of Cortana, which combines features from Siri and Google Now into one package. There are two ways to use Cortana: you can use voice commands, or you can type out your commands in the Start Menu.

A sinister threat is brewing deep inside the technology laboratories of Silicon Valley. Artificial Intelligence, disguised as helpful digital assistants and self-driving vehicles, is gaining a foothold – and it could one day spell the end for mankind. This is according to Stephen Hawking who has warned that humanity faces an uncertain future as technology learns to think for itself and adapt to its environment. A group of scientists and entrepreneurs, including Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking (pictured), have signed an open letter promising to ensure AI research benefits humanity. Google has set up an ethics board to oversee its work in artificial intelligence.