With generative artificial intelligence rapidly gaining traction around the world, Japanese firms ranging from SoftBank to Hitachi are developing or incorporating the technology into their businesses. At the same time, the government is working toward crafting a national AI strategy. Following the public debut of Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT last November, global tech giants such as California-based Google and China's Baidu have rolled out their own AI-powered chatbots, but Japanese firms have been conspicuous in their absence. Still, the nation's companies are beginning to make their presence felt, with SoftBank's mobile unit declaring earlier this month that it will develop a Japanese equivalent of ChatGPT. This could be due to a conflict with your ad-blocking or security software.

"Of all the questions you could have asked…" That's how Microsoft Cortana, the digital assistant and female voice inside the new $199 Invoke voice-activated speaker from Harman Kardon, responded when I asked what she thought of Amazon Echo, the rival speaker it will inevitably draw comparisons to. It was Echo and its own chatty artificial intelligence-infused assistant Alexa, after all, that started what is rapidly becoming an increasingly crowded market for such intelligent cloud-connected speakers. The speakers let you use your voice to set alarms and timers, turn on lights, list appointments, deliver the news and play music. More: Google Home, Amazon Echo, Apple HomePod -- or all 3? How to choose a smart speaker Google's been expanding its lineup of Google Home speakers with the Google Assistant. Apple is readying a HomePod speaker with Siri for a December release.

Robots that think and feel emotions like humans will enter our homes in as little as ten years. That's according to Dr Mark Sagar, who is the chief executive of Soul Machines, a New Zealand-based company that develops intelligent and responsive avatars. Sagar, an artificial intelligence programmer, creates incredibly realistic virtual humans which can respond to questions and learn from experience. The avatars blink and communicate exactly like we do. But they are powered by a virtual neural network which helps them learn social cues and spot patterns in order to answer questions.