By KM Madhusudhan, CTO, MindTree 2016 has seen technologies such as IoT, automation and cognitive computing moving beyond the concept stage. Experts opine that consumer-oriented technologies behind Pokémon Go (featuring world-class augmented reality) and the launch of smart home solutions like Google Home and Amazon Echo have greater use in enterprises. Some game-changing technologies of 2017 are: INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT) Despite advancements, enterprises haven't adopted IoT on a large scale. As IoT becomes more mainstream, solutions like smart cars and smart buildings that integrate IoT with cognitive computing will emerge. AUTOMATION Every aspect of the software lifecycle -coding, testing, deployment or operations -could be automated with DevOps playing an important role in the automation process.

Lenovo is best known for its popular ThinkPad laptops and Yoga convertibles, and you may even remember that it makes smartphones too. But the Chinese company is branching out from notebooks, handsets and wearables with a push into smart home gadgets, starting with an Amazon Echo clone. The creatively named Lenovo Smart Assistant offers Alexa in a taller, rounder and more colorful speaker than the Echo, and starts at a cheaper $130, to boot. The new device is available in basic and premium flavors, with the latter offering Harman Kardon audio enhancements for $50 extra. I checked out prototypes of both models here at CES, but despite being impressed by the volume of the music it pumped out, I'm otherwise struggling to see its appeal.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is touching every technology sector around the world, and it's having a significant impact on how enterprises and consumers interact with machines and devices. TechRepublic talked to IoT experts in a range of disciplines to find out what they think the biggest trends will be in 2017. Participants were Kevin Curran, IEEE senior member and senior lecturer in computer science at Ulster University; Francesco Cetraro, head of registrations, .cloud; Artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, healthcare IoT, industrial IoT, and wearables are some of the topics of conversation about where the Internet of Things is headed in 2017. Diabetics have been waiting for years for better technology to manage their condition. Some got tired of waiting and hacked together an open source hardware and software solution.

It can read lips and create new food recipes. It can win at chess, Jeopardy and the game Go. Every major technology company appears to be integrating it into how they organize and operate their business. And it seems like just about every new app in existence claims its software uses some sort of machine learning to make life even better. Artificial intelligence is splashed across headlines like never before.

Experimentation with voice-activated assistants and text-triggered chatbots blossomed in 2016, enabling users to order from Taco Bell using Slack's messaging interface, check the status of UPS packages and order office supplies from Staples. In 2017, some of these tools won't make the cut while others will proliferate across consumer and enterprise sectors, creating new workflows, operational efficiencies and opportunities for improved customer service. Alexa, though positioned as a home product, is poised to become the go-to platform for voice-based assistants for consumers and businesses. Wynn Hotels plans to equip nearly 5,000 rooms with Amazon.com's Echo device, which will allow people to query Alexa for room and hotel information.

We ask Siri for recommendations on where to eat, ask Google for directions to the restaurant, ask our car to play music or make a phone call, ask our house to turn on the lights and the heat before we get home. Deep Knowledge Ventures, a Hong Kong-based life science venture capital company, has already appointed an AI robot to its board of directors. The robot, called Vital (Validating Investment Tool for Advancing Life Sciences) was designed to analyze trends in the data of certain companies in an effort to predict successful investments. Vital is an equal member of the board and is expected to eventually be given an equal vote in all financial decisions made by the company. "The variables involved in the long-term success of a biotechnology company are many and complex," Deep Knowledge Ventures said in a statement.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) kicks off in Las Vegas this week, with technology companies from around the globe descending on "Sin City" to showcase their latest gadgets and offer a glimpse into our digital future. From the camcorder and the CD player to the Xbox and the plasma TV, some of the best-known technologies of all time have debuted at CES, and some of the most famous industry figures have given keynotes, including Bill Gates, Michael Dell and Elon Musk. This year marks the show's 50th annivarsary. The first CES kicked off in 1967, with 250 exhibitors and 17,500 attendees gathered in New York City. Since then, CES has grown by more than 10-fold, and now encompasses both traditional and non-traditional tech industries.

Each year is filled with unforeseen surprises--advances we thought were years away, unexpected technology applications (like AI used for mental healthcare), and unlikely startups reimagining entire markets. These breakthroughs keep Singularity Hub's team of tech-enthusiasts on our toes around the clock. Though we can't forecast like famous futurist Ray Kurzweil, many of us have a favorite technology or two that we constantly track. Moving into the new year, these are some of the technologies we'll be eagerly watching in 2017 and beyond. "AI really made headlines this year. AlphaGo was on the tongue, OpenAI got a billion dollars to develop ethical AI, and toddlers talked to Google Home and Amazon Echo. The first two developments are fascinating, but the third may be more immediately relevant. The idea of X product AI will get legs next year--but it's the surprises I'm most looking forward to." "Cybersecurity means a lot of things to a lot of people, and often one person's definition is at total odds with another's. For me, I long for the type of unbeatable encryption promised by quantum computing, because quantum computing is going to make today's encryption worthless. Meanwhile, billions of smart gadgets are coming online, and most of us already conduct our daily lives by digital means. With governments demanding access to digital devices and histories, I fear loss of citizen privacy, but still have faith in the democratization of cybersecurity."

Pretty much all of the tech giants attend the vast Vegas expo - either to unveil new products or to clinch deals behind the scene. But in recent years it's been start-ups that have had many of the most eye-arresting and sensational reveals. There are more at this year's show than ever before, thanks in part to crowdfunding. They now have to convince retailers - hunting through the halls for the next bestsellers - that the promise of their concept videos has been delivered upon. Dozens of start-ups are also there thanks to help from governments and other national bodies - France, Israel, Ukraine and the Netherlands all have stands where they'll fly the flag for local talent.

When new engineers join Facebook--no matter whether they're just out of college or VP-level veterans--they spend their first six weeks in Bootcamp, an intensive program designed to help them learn the ins and outs of the company's massive code base and the always-evolving set of programming tools at their disposal. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's original engineer, contributed more to that code than anyone else in the early years of its existence. But the 32-year-old CEO never went through the Bootcamp program, which was launched in 2006, two years after he founded the company in his Harvard dorm room. Last January, Zuckerberg announced that he planned to build an AI system to run his home using Facebook tools, in the latest of the personal-growth challenges he gives himself each year. An exciting exploration of the state of the art of AI--a technology field essential to Facebook's future--the project also forced him to refresh his command of the company's programming tools and processes.