They came for the 27th Tokyo Game Show, which was back in full ostentatious form this year after a pandemic hiatus and a timorous return in 2022. Most came hoping for the chance to play one of the hundreds of as-yet-unreleased video games on display within the show's 11 hangars. Others hoped to broker deals to have their video game published, or to publish someone else's. To step through the front doors was to enter a scene of roaring overstimulation. A babble of tens of thousands of voices clashed with a competing timpani of video game trailers.

Released today, The Big Brain Revolution shows the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on the human brain, uncovering hidden secrets from the science of neuro-technology. The author examines the evidence that bombarding 1.4kg of brain matter with pings, dings and rings is re-wiring our neurons - transforming the way humans think and act. AI is able to read signals from your body and brain, detecting when you lie and finding out when you fall in love. The book is a fun fact-filled review of the latest advancements in everything from restoring memory loss to robot parents. Readers will also discover psychological strategies for healthy thinking in a technological age with techniques to help keep control of your own brain.

If a battle for world domination ever broke out between humans and computers, I'm pretty sure the computers would win. They've already turned us into a population of Facebook slaves and Twitter addicts, and they're not even sentient yet. Some say we've become so dependent on the little bursts of dopamine we get from social media hits, it's starting to rewire our brains. But if you think Instagram and Snapchat are threats to our well-being, you ain't seen nothing yet. Some of the smartest people on the planet see a much more sinister villain on the horizon, and it's powered by artificial intelligence.

To some, Artificial Intelligence will dramatically improve our lives in the future. To others, it spells the end of mankind. A new report from Oxford and Cambridge researchers has fuelled the debate about AI, warning that malicious use of AI presented a "clear and present danger" to society that could emerge in the next decade. The ongoing discussion about the technology has some of the greatest minds in the world pitted at opposite ends of the spectrum. While the technology has undoubted benefits, many point out that not enough consideration has been devoted to the potentially catastrophic outcomes.

It may be the stuff of science fiction, but even some of the most respected minds in science and technology are scared that artificial intelligence might wipe out humanity. However, while virtually every lab involved in designing AI has launched its own ethics group in a bid to play down fears, a more secure defence against social ills may come from the blockchain. A prime example of how the blockchain will work in this regard comes from Talla. Founded in Boston in 2015, Talla started its career by offering AI-based enterprise tools to businesses, yet at the end of last year it announced an ethereum-based blockchain for artificial intelligences. Dubbed the BotChain and currently undergoing beta testing, it works by issuing digital certificates for every action an AI takes and by linking these certificates into – unsurprisingly enough – a chain of encrypted documents. By doing this, it enables companies to monitor the activities of the autonomous bots they're using and ensure that legal and ethical standards are being upheld.

It's 2045 and Earth has been brought to its knees by catastrophic climate change and a worldwide energy crisis, not to mention famine, poverty, disease and war. In short, everything we presently fear has come to pass. It is the ultimate dystopian future. Wade Watts, the story's protagonist, is born into a generation that feels failed by reality. The only thing making life bearable is the OASIS, a globally networked virtual reality world.

Today, machine learning has come of age as it seeks to create predictive models and algorithms and gives computers the ability to carry out tasks without being explicitly programmed. Examples of Machine Learning we use on a day-to-day basis are Google search engines, recommendations from Amazon, Netflix and YouTube, and even suggested friends on Facebook. However, machine learning is also being called out as the saviour of cybersecurity, with companies incorporating it into their technologies to predict, prevent and defeat the next major cyber-attack. With internet crime growing at the rate it is, we need all the tools in our armory to stand any chance of keeping pace. According to the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, security scams have cost Australians over $950 000 to date in 2017, with hacking scams hitting the hardest.

AlphaGo beating Lee Sedol, Go World Champion, may make us humans feel uneasy when confronted with such intellect, but should we instead be embracing artificial intelligence (AI)? Optimists see AI to be the saviour of customer experience in the financial services industry. Siri and Cortana are now at the frontline of providing information services, before we would of had to manually type into a search engine or call up a customer service team to find the answer. This seems just the beginning of AI enhancing customer experience, and its influence in the financial services sector is growing. The financial services sector has been excited with news of BBVA working on their virtual banking assistant Lola, RBS investing into a robo-advisory recording system and Mitsubishi UFJ challenging Lola with their humanoid virtual assistant Nao. All have promised a more efficient and reliable experience for the customer.

Hundreds of companies are incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) into their technologies to predict, prevent and defeat the next major cyber attack. At RSA last month IBM joined the pack, announcing Watson for Cyber Security and demonstrating the huge potential for artificial intelligence to support the infosec community. With internet crime growing at the rate it is, businesses need all the help they can get. According to PwC, the number of security incidents across all industries rose by 38% in 2015. See also: Where does machine learning fit in the education sector?

Advertisers have come up against a wall. The use of ad blockers is on the rise as consumers look to control how much interruptive advertising they receive online and over social media. People may not welcome what they see as an endless barrage of messaging, but that doesn't mean they want to block everything. They just want communications that are relevant. In the UK, for instance, the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) found that more than half of consumers would turn ad blocking off to receive the content they want.