AI is the star of Yelp's fall product update. The review site has updated Yelp Assistant, its chatbot to answer users' questions, rolling the tool out for all business categories. Its responses will draw on information from the business' website as well as posts by other Yelp users. The chatbot will also remember past queries and preferences when it's used for finding services. Saved information can be managed in the Yelp app under Yelp Assistant memory settings.
Home products company Kohler is launching a new Kohler Health division, and its first product is a $599 camera for your toilet. The item, dubbed Dekoda, is equipped with sensors that analyze whatever liquid or solid waste goes into the toilet bowl with "validated machine learning algorithms." The data, which can offer insights on hydration and gut health as well as detecting the presence of blood, then goes to Kohler Health's iPhone app, although Android support is in the works.
Bed bugs: the nightmare of any city dweller, frequent traveler, and now Google employee. The team at the company's Chelsea campus were notified on Sunday that a possible bed bug infestation had been discovered in the building and were told to remain at home so the location could be treated. As if working over the weekend wasn't enough of a bummer. Fortunately, exterminators collected their bug bounty, and employees were allowed to return to the building on Monday morning.
Prime Day is usually a good opportunity to snag deals on Amazon's own product lines, and this event is no exception. Amazon is currently offering some noteworthy discounts on its collection of ereaders.
Amazon Prime Day is upon us and that always means some steep discounts, including on headphones, so if you've been thinking about upgrading your audio, now's a good time to buy. Beats is running a sale on the high-end option from its line of wireless headphones.
Fitness tech appears to be having a strange spat. Earlier this week, Strava filed a lawsuit alleging that Garmin infringed on its patents for two features related to tracking exercise routes: segments and heatmaps. It's also claiming that Garmin violated a Master Cooperation Agreement by developing its own heat map feature.
Two Amazon delivery drones reportedly collided with a crane this morning in Tolleson, AZ. The incident occurred about two miles from a fulfillment center run by the tech company and involved two of its Prime Air drones. No injuries have been reported. Law enforcement were called to the scene, however Sgt.
Forbes has published an investigation into Amazon's efforts to court law enforcement clients for artificial intelligence and surveillance services. The article reveals that not only is the company promoting Amazon Web Services as a potential police tool, but it has been partnering with other businesses in that sector to use its cloud infrastructure.
As part of Google's smart home announcements today, the company has unveiled a new look for its Google Home app that will begin rolling out globally today. The heart of the redesign is about Gemini for Home, which will replace the Google Assistant role in smart devices and promises a more conversational way to interact with and direct the company's AI. The Google Home app is also now where customers will control their Nest devices.