One of the things Apple unveiled during its iPhone SE event on Monday was a cute WALL-E-like robot that knows how to do just one thing: Fully disassemble old iPhones into their base components so they can be recycled. At the time, we thought the video Apple showed was pretty interesting, but it looks like Liam is more than an eco-friendly gimmick. This smartphone-disassembling machine was something so secret inside Apple that only a few engineers who were hired specifically to build it knew about it. Furthermore, it's a machine so unique that no other companies have it. DON'T MISS: 12 paid iPhone apps on sale for free right now A few days before Apple's keynote, Mashable got an early access to Liam at a secret location close to Apple's headquarters in California.

The company typically likes to stand on the bleeding edge of technology (think self-driving cars and multi-modal drones), but today it's looking back at the venerable landline. Google is launching Fiber Phone, a new service tied to its Fiber Internet service, which it has slowly rolled out in the U.S. over the past few years. SEE ALSO: Google's Project Fi now works with select iPads and Android tablets Fiber Phone is basically landline service for Google Fiber customers. It costs an extra 10 a month on top of the 70 (gigabit Internet only) or 120 (gigabit Internet TV) services that Fiber offers, which gives you unlimited local and nationwide calling. International calls cost the same as Google Voice.

Nasa has announced that it has found evidence of flowing water on Mars. Scientists have long speculated that Recurring Slope Lineae -- or dark patches -- on Mars were made up of briny water but the new findings prove that those patches are caused by liquid water, which it has established by finding hydrated salts. Several hundred camped outside the London store in Covent Garden. The 6s will have new features like a vastly improved camera and a pressure-sensitive "3D Touch" display

A team of US researchers has built an energy-friendly chip that can perform powerful artificial intelligence (AI) tasks, enabling future mobile devices to implement "neural networks" modelled on the human brain. The team from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) developed a new chip designed specifically to implement neural networks. It is 10 times as efficient as a mobile GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) so it could enable mobile devices to run powerful AI algorithms locally rather than uploading data to the internet for processing. The GPU is a specialised circuit designed to accelerate the image output in a frame buffer intended for output to a display. Modern smartphones are equipped with advanced embedded chipsets that can do many different tasks depending on their programming.

A team of researchers at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) led by Li-Shiuan Peh has come up with a new infrared depth-sensing system. The new system, which works outdoors as well as in, was built by attaching a US 10 laser to a smartphone, with MIT saying the inexpensive approach could be used to convert conventional personal vehicles, such as wheelchairs and golf carts, into autonomous ones. Inexpensive rangefinding devices, such as the Microsoft Kinect, have been a great help to robotics engineers. Using the off-the-shelf product that relies on an infrared laser to measure distance, they allow for rapid prototyping and the ability to create robots that can sense and navigate in their environments without having to constantly reinvent the necessary technology. Unfortunately, Kinect and similar infrared-based systems tend to be a bit fussy when it comes to ambient light conditions.

Here's the technology news you need to know this Tuesday. The FBI says it has hacked into the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone without Apple's help. The fact that the FBI was apparently able to get the encrypted data without Apple's help raised new security questions about Apple's devices. The photo app plans to completely change the way its feed works by algorithmically ranking photos, instead of showing them in reverse chronological order. NTT Data Corp wants to expand in North America and improve its services business.

Samsung Electronics Co. is "actively looking" to acquire developers of artificial intelligence and other software as the world's biggest smartphone maker tries to overcome flat-lining sales for its devices. Samsung, which has 61 billion in cash and equivalents, wants to morph into more of a software-driven company, Executive Vice President Rhee In Jong said in an interview. The South Korean consumer-electronics giant also is spending more to develop its own services because the global market for gadgets is saturated and can't be counted on for significant revenue growth, he said. "We are actively looking for M&A targets of all sorts in the software area," said Rhee, who runs the mobile division's software research-and-development business. "We are open to all possibilities, including artificial intelligence.

Julie Sobowale is a freelance journalist and lawyer based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, specializing in legal reporting. She writes about trends in the legal industry including legal technology, innovation, entrepreneurship, diversity and major shifts in legal culture. Her work has appeared in publications from the American Bar Association, the Canadian Bar Association, the Canadian Corporate Council Association, Canadian Lawyer and the Nova Scotia Barristers Society. She's also given presentations on legal trends, alternative careers and legal education. She graduated from the Dalhousie Schulich School of Law in 2012 and was the recipient of the Dalhousie Faculty of Law Leadership Award.

For years, automakers have rhapsodized about how our cars would become mobile offices and living spaces. And then they botched even the simple stuff, like letting you dial up the Backstreet Boys from your iPod on the car's sound system. The Mercedes-Benz F 015 will be the rolling roost of your dreams. You'll just have to wait at least until 2030, when Mercedes thinks this kind of hydrogen-powered, fully autonomous vehicle will become viable. Bigger than an S-Class, the Benz concept looks like a Clockwork Orange hipster lounge, with its walnut-veneered floor and wall-wrapping touch and gesture displays.

Nasa has announced that it has found evidence of flowing water on Mars. Scientists have long speculated that Recurring Slope Lineae -- or dark patches -- on Mars were made up of briny water but the new findings prove that those patches are caused by liquid water, which it has established by finding hydrated salts. Several hundred camped outside the London store in Covent Garden. The 6s will have new features like a vastly improved camera and a pressure-sensitive "3D Touch" display