The techniques Microsoft Research used to achieve a new world-best error rate will eventually enhance the Cortana Windows 10 personal assistant. Microsoft claims to have achieved the world's lowest error rate for speech recognition, as the company jostles with Amazon, Apple, Google, and IBM to develop products that understand speech as well as humans can. According to Microsoft, its speech scientists at Microsoft Research have achieved a word error rate (WER) of just 6.3 percent under an industry-standard evaluation, using techniques that will eventually enhance Cortana. The previous lowest error rate was 6.9 percent, achieved by IBM's Watson team, which beat their own record of eight percent set last year. Both Microsoft and IBM presented papers detailing their work on speech recognition at the Interspeech conference in San Francisco this week, where papers were also presented by Google's speech researchers.

If you're using an iPhone, WhatsApp just got a lot more useful. The company has pushed out its update for iOS 10, meaning that it's now compatible with the variety of useful features that the new iPhones update includes. And many of those are most important for things like WhatsApp. The new iOS update brings huge improvements to Siri, which is now much smarter. Those changes are central to apps like WhatsApp, because the two can now be integrated.

Gun lovers now have a dating website dedicated to them. Concealed Carry Match allows its users to meet other members who have similar views on Second Amendment rights. The development is potentially controversial, considering the anti-gun rhetoric that has been doing the rounds following the spate of shootings in the United States in the recent past. Working on a similar platform as other niche dating sites, Traverse City, Michigan-based ConcealedCarryMatch.com offers a paid membership, ranging from 10 weekly to 150 for a year. The site launched last month and reportedly registered opening-day traffic of 10,000 interested visitors, signaling at an increased intensification of the debate on gun control ahead of the presidential election in November.

Have you noticed that your friends are getting more dates on Tinder than you? If so, it could be down to your career. A new survey has found that male lawyers have the most success on the dating app than any other profession, with actors and creative directors coming close behind. While for women, teachers come out top closely followed by dentists and, interestingly, speech pathologists. A right swipe on Tinder is a "yes".

Tech experts explain how Amazon's products are evolving. A link has been sent to your friend's email address. Tech experts explain how Amazon's products are evolving.

GE unveiled a new integration that allows you to communicate with and control select kitchen appliances with Amazon Alexa. A link has been sent to your friend's email address. GE unveiled a new integration that allows you to communicate with and control select kitchen appliances with Amazon Alexa.

The Amazon Echo Dot has been upgraded and now sells for 50. We've scoured the web to find you the best deals on good products. All you'll have to do is say the magic word. Need a hand in the kitchen? You can dim your kitchen lights if you're feeling dramatic, set your bedroom temperature to a balmy 70 degrees, switch on your sprinkler system to keep those pesky kids off your lawn, and more with Amazon's digital assistant.

The Amazon Echo and Dot, which became available in white in addition to the original black in September of 2016. SAN FRANCISCO -- Kitchen counters of the world rejoice! The Amazon Echo now comes in white. The new version comes as Amazon announced it will now be making its voice-controlled speaker and digital assistant available in the United Kingdom and Germany for the first time. The hockey puck-sized Echo Dot also now comes in both black and white.

Amazon is launching a cheaper version of its smaller-sized home assistant, the Echo Dot, that it claims will be better at recognizing your voice from afar. The device is up for preorder starting Wednesday and will be shipping next month. The new Echo Dot, which will be priced at 49.99 compared to its original price of 89.99, includes a more powerful speech processor and will be available in black and white color options. Amazon is also allowing anyone to purchase the Echo Dot, whereas it was originally only available for those with a Prime account and an Amazon device that supports its Alexa assistant. The Echo Dot, unlike its larger sibling, isn't meant to function as a primary home entertainment speaker.

Amazon's aim is to have Alexa indistinguishable from a human voice. Dave Limp, Amazon's SVP of device and services business is standing in front of an image of the bridge of the starship Enterprise, explaining the inspiration for Amazon's surprise hit Echo device. "A lot of people wondered what was the inspiration for this vision, it really was this, this cultural icon it started here with the tap on the lapel to talk to the computer. And later in the Star Trek series you could be anywhere on the starship Enterprise and you could talk to the computer and she would respond quickly with an answer," he says. With a 100M investment fund and the opening up of cloud service APIs and an SDK, Alexa and the Echo could become the brains of your home automation and IoT network.