'Amazon's Alexa is now part of the family – I just hope she doesn't replace me'

The most futuristic thing I have ever bought used to be a Sonos music player. I'd have people over just to show it off. "Name a song," I'd say. "Go on, any version of any song by any act that ever lived. So they would, and I'd pull out my phone and – hey presto – seconds later, that song would boom out across my living room like magic. When friends moved house, I'd see their stupid boxes of old CDs and laugh. "You antiquated morons," I'd gloat. "When I move house, I'll be able to fit every song ever recorded into a shoebox.