"She," in this case, is an avatar created by IPsoft, the global information technology services company. In a demo shown to Tech Insider, she shifts her weight from side to side when waiting for someone to speak, and smiles in between questions. If you tell her you're upset about something, she'll frown in empathy. If all goes according to plan, Amelia will be the customer service agent of the future, an "employee" who can field customer support questions for people without needing to bringing a human in. IPsoft solutions manager Benjamin Case tells Tech Insider that these low-level tasks are remarkably consistent across industries.

Microsoft recently released its latest Insider Preview Build for PC and mobile that adds enhanced Cortana features for Office 365 users, and sends everyone off to tackle bugs. Build 14332 rolled out to the Fast ring on Tuesday without much in the way of big feature additions. This time around Microsoft is more focused on squashing bugs with a new program called the Bug Bash that the company announced earlier. In the company's parlance, a Bug Bash is a small window of time where Microsoft internal teams work on uncovering as many software issues as possible. With 14332 Microsoft is bringing Insiders into the fold for the first external Bug Bash that runs through Sunday.

Tinder, the dating app notorious for translating physical attraction into the swipe of a single fingertip, has launched a group dating feature. Tinder Social has been rolled out on a trial basis in Australia, but has been met with alarm after users realised the new feature exposes Facebook friends that also use the app. In a blog post announcing the launch of Tinder Social, the company presents the function as a means to meet people on a platonic basis, promising to take "an average night out with your friends to the next level". Users included in the trial are now able to join public groups consisting of Facebook contacts, and others can add them to these groups without permission. Crucially, these features are opt-out rather than opt-in; Tinder might out a person as a user of its app before an individual has a chance to turn the feature off.

Amazon is spreading the Alexa love. The voice service is now available on the Triby. This small, family-focused message board, internet radio and VoIP device is the first device available for purchase not made by Amazon to feature the company's clever voice service. Using the Amazon Alexa Voice Service (AVS), Invoxia, the maker behind the Triby, built the voice capability into the device. Now with Alexa, the Triby is an even better kitchen device allowing owners to tell it to set timers, play music or read sports scores.

Tinder wants to help you go out and bring along some friends. The popular dating app is expanding beyond one-to-one matches and looking to connect groups. Called Tinder Social, the new feature lets users create a group of people that includes everyone's pictures and names -- pulled from users' Tinder profiles -- as well as a location of where you are interested in going for the night. The app then functions the same as one-to-one matching, where users can swipe and match with other nearby groups that are interested in a night out. Once you're matched, you can chat with everyone in the group.

If you think artificial intelligence is something coming in the future, think again: Most people already use artificial intelligence on a daily basis, even if they do not think of it as such. Artificial intelligence or AI simply refers to machine learning put into action toward a goal. When you ask Siri or Cortana to call work or remind you about a dentist appointment, you are relying on artificial intelligence. See what AI is already doing in the modern economy and how future developments in the field of artificial intelligence might impact your life.

Two weeks after my wife and I invited Alexa into our home, we're saying goodbye to the Amazon Echo and returning it to Amazon for a refund. Admittedly, I had high hopes for the product, which was recently joined by two other Alexa-powered devices, the Echo Dot wireless speaker ( 90) and the Amazon Tap ()130, a less expensive (and less hands-free) version of the Echo. We went for the original Echo--which costs a whopping 180--after I had been inundated by repeated recommendations from my cohorts at the Build conference earlier this month. Everyone who owned an Echo loved it, from what I could tell, and like TiVo owners, they were eager to evangelize the product. So I ordered one, noting a wait time of almost two weeks--unusual for Amazon, but the Echo is apparently in very high demand--and told my wife Stephanie, who seemed curiously interested.

Amazon's Echo is often referred to as a Trojan Horse. Slid into your home under the guise of a wireless speaker, the Echo has grown to become one of the best ways to control smart home devices, such as lights, thermostats, locks, and more with just your voice. It turns out that it's much easier to turn your lights on or off with a voice command than to pull out your smartphone, unlock it, load an app, and push a button. The Echo also lets you set alarms, timers, catch up on the news, and yes, buy things from Amazon with simple voice commands. And its wireless speaker capabilities have expanded with support for Pandora and Spotify.

The market for AI applications is white hot with huge potential, but that potential needs to be tempered by a heavy dose of realism, according to industry analysts. "It's sort of captured the imagination of the world in general, but the danger we have with AI is expectations getting too high," Mike Gualtieri, an analyst with Forrester Research, said. From the early days of computing, the story of AI applications has always been one of early excitement, huge hype and inevitable bust. Every decade or so, some advance in computing power has led to speculation that machines capable of replicating some aspect of human thought were right around the corner. But each time the challenges proved too difficult, and the technology was not ready.

One of the most surprising part about Recommender Systems is, 'we summon to its suggestions / advice every other day, without even realizing that'. Let me show you some examples. Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn are among the most used websites on Internet today. Let us see how they use recommender systems. Facebook: Suggests us to make more friends using'People You May Know' section Similarly LinkedIn suggests you to connect with people you may know and YouTube suggests you relevant videos based on your previous browsing history.