$AAPL Surpassing Siri? Veveo aims to top Apple with voice search for video

$AAPL Surpassing Siri? Veveo aims to top Apple with voice search for video

With Veveo, a user could ask a device "show me action movies" — bringing up action results — and then modify the results with statements like, "what about Matt Damon" to filter the results by the actor and "show me the latest ones" to bring up the most recent Matt Damon movies, Vasisht said.

The user could then ask, "Who are we playing tonight?" — and the app will know you're no longer talking about action movies, Vasisht said. The app will figure out that you're asking about football, and that you're in Boston, and will speak to you with details about who the Patriots will be playing, he said.

"Voice is going to become one of the commonly expected interfaces" in the future, Vasisht said. "And this is one of the most advanced solutions relating to how people can interact with devices and apps."

The technology is a combination of natural language processing and voice recognition, he said. It is targeted for mobile devices, TVs and set-top boxes. (Check out a demo here.)

Stockholm is the latest tech epicenter

Stockholm is the latest tech epicenter

" If music service Spotify landed Stockholm on the high-tech map, companies like Klarna underscore its growing influence.

Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski swung through town this week to meet investors at Sequoia Capital and spread the word about his online retail payments startup. Though it has earned a solid reputation in Europe — not to mention $200 million in revenue last year — Klarna ("clear" in Swedish) has yet to debut in the USA.

That might change soon, as millions of consumers turn to smartphones and tablets to make purchases. Klarna, an 800-person company operation based in Stockholm, is eyeing the U.S. market."

Tweets, not résumés, are trending #icymi $fb

Tweets, not résumés, are trending #icymi $fb

There are many ways to land a job, but who knew that a tweet could be more important than a resume?

10 Million People Are Playing This Horrible Game

10 Million People Are Playing This Horrible Game

"Free-to-play card game Rage of Bahamut lives among the top-grossing games on the iPhone and Android charts, right up there with Temple Run 2 and Minecraft. Tokyo-based developer Cygamesrecently revealed that half of its 20 million overall players are playing Bahamut. That would make it one of the most popular games in the world.

That’s surprising because it’s also a real piece of crap.

“Bahamut’s success seems to tell today’s game designers that a game with minimal interactivity, massively disorganized UI and incredibly confusing game design is the way to hook millions of players and make a fortune,” said Arash Keshmirian, CEO of Limbic Software, in an e-mail.

For one of the most profitable English-language apps of the last year, Rage of Bahamut’s interface is shockingly ugly. The fantasy-themed trading card game looks like two Yahoo! Geocities went to war with each other, with text scattered everywhere and dial-up speed load times between every page.

You can even scroll past the top and bottom of the screen, almost as if the entire game is being rendered in some sort of makeshift mobile web browser. Since the game only works if you have a network connection, this may actually be the case.

Once you’re actually playing Bahamut, the goal is to level up and get lots of digital cards, each of which features anime artwork of goblins or scantily clad witch ladies. Level up more and get more witch ladies by completing quests and “battling” other players."

How Facebook, Vine and Snapchat Make Us Cheat

How Facebook, Vine and Snapchat Make Us Cheat $FB

"Cheating is as old as the institution of marriage.

It might even arguably be the default mode for our species — it’s not that we have to fight to cheat; we have to fight not to cheat. Because let’s face it: It’s not that difficult for us to allow — and want to allow in — the excitement of new desires, the thrill of a new connection, the high of a new experience.

But it’s even harder in a world where technology changes the notion of space and time, breaking down some of the barriers that may have protected us from cheating before."

Kim Dotcom will sell you a Mega membership for just half a bitcoin

Kim Dotcom will sell you a Mega membership for just half a bitcoin

"Kim Dotcom yesterday announced that the Mega storage service is now accepting payment via bitcoins, an encrypted, peer-to-peer digital currency that isn't backed by any government.

While Mega allows free access to 50GB of storage, there are payment plans allowing anywhere from 500GB to 4TB. The exchange rate for one bitcoin is equal to just under 20 euros. With Mega's membership fees beginning at €9.99 per month, that means bitcoin-paying users can get on board for a little more than half of one bitcoin. Bitcoin purchases can be made through BitVoucher, a reseller of Mega services."

'Halo' creator unveils gaming epic 'Destiny'

'Halo' creator unveils gaming epic 'Destiny'

"Two of the video gaming industry's biggest powerhouses have teamed up to deliver a new sci-fi action opus: Destiny.

Bungie, the creators of the multibillion dollar Halo franchise, inked a 10-year deal with Activision, the world's largest independent video game publisher, responsible for the highly successful Call of Dutyand Skylanders franchises, among others."