Gatebox AI is an unusual virtual assistant that involves a projected CGI character kind-of trapped in a jar -- with voice controls! The sales pitch is that this virtual assistant will give the sensation of living with a fictional character, or according to how creator Vinclu Inc. words it, "your heroes". Which is fine, if your hero is a non-spectacular CGI anime character with blue hair and excessively submissive temperament. Behind the virtual idol/slave gloss, Gatebox AI's assistant functions approach a bare-bones Amazon Echo. According to the preorder site, Gatebox's debut character Hikari has the "ultimate healing voice" (uh huh) and the J-Pop AI will adjust to your daily rhythms, welcoming you home or sensing when you get up.

Natural language processing has reached an important milestone. Sophisticated chatbots are now available as white label and open source offerings while larger technology companies are releasing Virtual Personal Assistants capable of performing complex tasks via voice commands, from ordering goods and services to acting as a smart hub for smart homes. These new categories of products and services are set to revolutionise customer care, search and discovery, and the provision of goods and third party services. Join pioneers from this exciting new space to learn how AI is set to radically transform how we interact with the world around us.

Gatebox is new holographic home assistant that's similar to the Amazon Echo's Alexa, only more anthropomorphic--and creepier. Made by the Japanese company Vinclu Inc, the device is a transparent, voice-activated cylinder that displays a tiny holographic character named Azuma Hikari (presumably, other characters can be added later). Pre-orders for a limited production run of 300 units began today on Gatebox's website. Hikari was created to be a "comforting character that is great for those living alone." The purpose of this cutesy anime character, blue hair, mini skirt, knee high socks and all, is to "do all she can just for the owner"--also referred to as "master." It seems designed specifically to appeal to lonely bachelors.

Google has added support for Netflix to its home assistant Google Home, just in time for binge-watching during the holidays. To get started you'll need the latest version of the Google Home app, and Chromecast needs to be plugged into your TV. Once in the Google Home app go to Devices - Home - Settings - More - Videos and Photos and link your Netflix account to your Google account. Once you're all done with that, say "OK Google, play Stranger Things on Netflix on my TV" the movie will start streaming. You can ask Google Home to play your favorite series, skip episodes, pause and resume playback and turn on captions.

If you've been itching to talk to your Google Home about current events, travel, and pizza, you're in luck. The voice-activated speaker just added nearly three dozen new services that will expand its knowledge of what happening in your house and the world. Earlier this week, Google Home gained the ability to play Netflix shows through a Chromecast and display pictures stored in the Google Photos app, but these new actions are conversational, meaning you can talk to the specific service to get information. Similar to Amazon's Alexa Skills, if you're looking for a recipe for tonight's dinner, the Food Network can walk you through it. Or if you want to know what's happening in the world, hit up CNBC, The Huffington Post, or The Wall Street Journal.

If Siri or Alexa had a human-like form, they might resemble Gatebox Labs' hologram-in-a-jar digital assistant. Reminiscent of a sci-fi movie device, the Gatebox is either the future of digital assistants or the end of humanity. SEE ALSO: This device can project'Star Wars'-like holograms in the air Like the Echo and Google Home, users can talk to the Gatebox and its digital assistant, Azuma Hikari, will talk back. It has the same basic smart home applications as the Echo and Home, with the ability to control other smart home appliances. Additionally, the Gatebox has several sensors for detecting motion and temperature. The biggest difference here, besides being able to see Azuma Hikari emote with body language, is advanced friendship capabilities that make her even more humanoid.

San Francisco (AFP) - Mark Zuckerberg envisions a software system inspired by the "Iron Man" character Jarvis as a virtual butler managing his household. The Facebook founder's dream is about artificial intelligence, which is slowly but surely creeping into our daily lives, no longer just science fiction. Artificial intelligence or AI is getting a foothold in people's homes, starting with the Amazon devices like its Echo speaker which links to a personal assistant "Alexa" to answer questions and control connected devices such as appliances or light bulbs. Analyst Carolina Milanesi of the research firm Creative Strategies said that "2016 was the year about raising awareness, and exposing consumers to the idea of AI in a more mass market way." Milanesi said it may take time for the technology to fulfill its potential, noting that companies need "a strong hook" to bring large numbers of consumers into this world.

In the sci-fi film Ex Machina, reclusive inventor Nathan Bateman foresees a bleak future, telling the movie's protagonist Caleb that, "One day the AIs are going to look back on us the same way we look at fossil skeletons on the plains of Africa." When we don't understand something, we tend to fear it; which is one reason popular movies like Ex Machina and HBO's nail-biting new series Westworld like to imagine futures in which artificial intelligence plots to destroy humanity. Fortunately, AI is far more likely to recommend those titles to your Netflix queue than to result in a dystopian society out of a George Orwell novel. While technologies including Amazon's Alexa have been busy making people's lives outside of the workplace easier, bots were the big office story in 2016, helping companies handle routine tasks such as managing support tickets and streamlining workflows. In the coming years, machine learning will take on more of the non-routine work as well, ushering in the new era of artificial intelligence--one that looks to be far brighter than the future Hollywood typically envisions.

PayPal fights fraud with machine learning consuming more than 1.1 petabytes of data for 169 million customer accounts at any given moment. Airbnb uses Aerosolve Machine Learning package to help owners set a price for rental based on features of home, time of year, demand etc. Amazon's recommendation engine is one example where machine learning drives a lot of economic value Microsoft Azure Machine Learning, Google Prediction APIs, Amazon ML and IBM Watson Developer Services come with ready made algorithms that allow businesses to extract patterns from data, predict trends, identify language translations, understand social media sentiments, just to name a few. Apple Siri, Google Now, and Microsoft Cortana-like digital personal assistants are making use of Machine Learning for speech recognition to become smarter & creative therefore knowing more about you and your needs. By connecting the sensors and systems in each of their elevators to the cloud, ThyssenKrupp, a Garman Elevator Manufacturer, has been able to move beyond preventative maintenance to offer predictive and preemptive services, a service that has not been possible before in the elevator industry. Today after 56 years even the Barbie doll is going to become interactive and internet connected, that can talk to children and respond to their questions.

With its large icons and stripped back interface, Android Auto is a simpler, safer way to access music and maps in your car. It's also designed for voice, and finally Google has enabled "Okay Google" commands for everyone. That means you don't have to touch the screen, or your phone, to start speaking with Google's assistant. The feature might sound small, but for drivers this could be a revelatory addition. Whether you want to switch playlists, check the weather, or settle an argument (how old is Obama again?) you can do this without taking your hands off the steering wheel.