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VOICE ACTIVATION Voice recognition has been easing its way into our lives for a few years, via built-in virtual smartphone assistants such as Apple’s Siri. Last year, Amazon launched a voice-activated home speaker, the Echo, which answers questions, reads audio books and plays music on command. The Wynn hotel in Las Vegas has just installed them in each of its 4,748 rooms.

Aloft has unveiled the world’s first voice-activated hotel rooms in Boston and Santa Clara. A simple “Goodnight” will turn out the lights, while “Good morning” will switch them back on. Clarion Hotel Amaranten in Stockholm has run a trial using Amazon’s voice assistant, Alexa, allowing guests to book a taxi or set a wake-up alarm.