skills
GlobalWonks relaunches as Enquire AI following $5.5M round
When users ask a question they receive bite-sized answers in real time from over 40,000 possible experts based on expertise tags.
‘Carpentry Compiler’ turns 3D models to instructions on how to build them
Even to an experienced carpenter, it may not be obvious what the best way is to build a structure they’ve designed. A new digital tool, Carpentry Compiler, provides a way forward, converting the
DHS wants to expand airport face recognition scans to include US citizens
Homeland Security wants to expand facial recognition checks for travelers arriving to and departing from the U.S. to also include citizens, which had previously been exempt from the mandatory checks.
Disinformation ‘works better than censorship,’ warns internet freedom report
A rise in social media surveillance, warrantless searches of travelers’ devices at the border and the continued spread of disinformation are among the reasons why the U.S. has declined in intern
Alexa’s voice apps for kids can now offer purchases that parents approve
Amazon will now allow developers to offer premium content for purchase in Alexa skills aimed at children. The company on Friday introduced new tools for building skills with in-app purchases that requ
Amazon shareholders reject facial recognition sale ban to governments
Amazon shareholders have rejected two proposals that would have requested the company not to sell its facial recognition technology to government customers. The breakdown of the votes is not immediate
Amazon under greater shareholder pressure to limit sale of facial recognition tech to the government
This week could mark a significant setback for Amazon’s facial recognition business if privacy and civil liberties advocates — and some shareholders — get their way. Months earlier, sharehol
Security lapse exposed a Chinese smart city surveillance system
Smart cities are designed to make life easier for their residents: better traffic management by clearing routes, making sure the public transport is running on time and having cameras keeping a watchf
Amazon launches ‘Alexa-hosted skills’ for voice app developers
Amazon on Thursday launched a new service aimed at Alexa developers that automatically provisions and helps them to manage a set of AWS cloud resources for their Alexa skill’s backend service. T
Alexa’s skills can now work together, initially for bookings and printing
Amazon this morning announced a new way for customers to use Alexa’s skills – together, in combined requests. That is, you can start a request in one skill, then have it fulfilled in anoth
Amazon introduces APL, a new design language for building Alexa skills for devices with screens
Along with the launch of the all-new Echo Show, the Alexa-powered device with a screen, Amazon also introduced a new design language for developers who want to build voice skills that include multimed
More Alexa ‘blueprints’ arrive, offering customizable voice apps for families and roommates
Earlier this year, Amazon rolled out a new feature that allowed Alexa device owners to create their own custom skills using preconfigured templates. Today, Amazon is expanding Alexa Blueprints, as the
Boost VC backs Storyline’s Alexa skill builder
Have you felt a disconnect with your Alexa and wished she could share more of your sense of humor or tell you an actually scary ghost story? Startup Storyline makes designing your own Alexa skills a
Amazon now lets you share your custom skills made with Alexa Blueprints
Earlier this year, Amazon introduced “Alexa Blueprints” – a way for anyone to create their own customized Alexa skills for personal use, without needing to know how to code. Today, t
Amazon will now directly pay top Alexa ‘kid’ skill developers in the U.K. and Germany
Amazon is expanding its program that pays developers directly for their top-performing Alexa skills, by now offering these “developer rewards,” as they’re called, to those based in t
Amazon opens up in-skill purchasing to all Alexa developers
Amazon today launched in-skill purchasing to all Alexa developers, along with Amazon Pay for skills. That means developers have a way to generate revenue from their voice applications on Alexa-powered
Alexa will soon gain a memory, converse more naturally, and automatically launch skills
Alexa will soon be able to recall information you’ve directed her to remember, as well as have more natural conversations that don’t require every command to begin with “Alexa.”
Amazon’s new ‘Alexa Blueprints’ let anyone create custom Alexa skills and responses
Amazon this morning is introducing “Alexa Blueprints,” a new way for any Alexa owner to create their own customized Alexa skills or responses, without needing to know how to code. The idea
Kids Court, the grand prize winner from Amazon’s developer contest, disappears from the Alexa Skills Store
What does winning the Alexa Skills Challenge earn you from Amazon? Apparently, in addition to the $20,000 Grand Prize, you might also have your skill yanked from the Amazon Skill Store without warning
AI will create new jobs but skills must shift, say tech giants
AI will create more jobs than it destroys was the not-so-subtle rebuttal from tech giants to growing concern over the impact of automation technologies on employment. Execs from Google, IBM and Salesf