Techonomy 16 - Techonomy

We've had talking dolls since Edison's time. Now, not only do the toys talk back, but using AI and cloud-based systems, they remember, record, transcribe and even email parents. Hello Barbie is just one example of animated and "cognitized" children's toys and objects that are increasingly entering our homes. When combined with personal assistants such as Amazon's Echo and Apple's Siri, childhood interactions, general inquisitiveness and simple play are being transformed. Is this a good thing?