Gone are the days of tediously dragging your baggage by the handle through a crowded airport because now there is an autonomous suitcase that follows you. Smart suitcase technology has been around for awhile in the Internet of Things, but mostly in terms of being able to track and lock/unlock your bag with your smartphone. Now we're reaching a whole new level.

University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutmann and Comcast’s David L. Cohen, chair of Penn’s Board of Trustees, welcomed more than 1,200 attendees to the grand opening ceremony of the Pennovation Center. The festivities on Friday marked the official launch of the new three-story, 58,000-square-foot center. The center opened in September as Penn’s new hub for innovation and new business ventures at 3401 Grays Ferry Ave. “The Pennovation Center is an iconic new landmark for Penn’s innovation ecosystem and a dynamic place to facilitate and accelerate entrepreneurial activities,” Gutmann said in a release.

Last week’s massive distributed denial-of-service attack has prompted an urgent focus on the need for industry-led cybersecurity standards for internet of things devices. U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, (D-Va.) said Thursday that he favors an industry-based approach before seeking some form of government regulation of IoT security. “Last week’s attack does reveal a new level of vulnerability, and I’m trying to make it clear ... that this is not a problem that the government ought to be the first actor in solving,” he said in a telephone interview.

Mastercard is taking two big steps forward when it comes to mobile integration thanks to a new chatbot system and a partnership that brings payments to wearable devices, signaling that the credit card company is committed to making multichannel retail more mobile. The two new initiatives, a chatbot for banks and a partnership with Fit Pay, were announced at the Money 20/20 event in Las Vegas. Both announcements are good indicators of the importance of mobile to Mastercard when it thinks about the modern consumer’s relationship to banking.

Bill Ford is tired of hearing the future of cars belongs to Silicon Valley. Yet for years, the Apple and Google crowd have been telling him that only Big Tech can make driverless vehicles. “There was this presumption that we were too dumb to get it,” said the Ford Motor Co. executive chairman and great-grandson of auto pioneer Henry Ford. “The conversation has really shifted.” He’s not kidding. Tech giants Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, once intent on disrupting, if not destroying, Detroit, have concluded for now that they don’t want to build cars. Sure, they still bank on supplying the …

NBA Digital is partnering with a live virtual reality technology firm to show one NBA League Pass game a week in virtual reality to users with compatible Samsung devices. The partnership with NextVR will allow for one game to be watched through virtual reality as part of NBA League Pass—the league’s premium service that allows access to every game of the season— for free through its trial period. The development marks the first regular schedule of live games delivered in VR by a professional sports team, but other leagues are sure to be following close behind.

The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia is debuting a new full suite of virtual reality experiences available through the museum’s first mobile application. The Franklin Institue is hosting a free public launch event to raise awareness about the new program. The museum is hoping to drive foot traffic through the museum by modernizing the mobile approach to how visitors interact with museums.

Alexa now (officially) works with Logitech's Harmony Hub, meaning it's a lot easier to get voice control over your home entertainment and automation devices. After you enable the Alexa skill on an Amazon Echo, Dot or other supported device, you'll be able to start and stop Harmony Activities, change channels and control devices using the AI assistant. Simple commands include "Alexa, turn on Netflix," or "Alexa, turn on my TV." You also get a certain amount of programmability, thanks to Logitech's Activities. If you say "Alexa, turn on my …

Two Google's smartwatches — first rumored in July this year — will launch in the first quarter of 2017, and will both run Android Wear 2.0. That's according to longtime leaker Evan Blass (evleaks), who tweeted the expected date alongside pictures of the supposed watches shared earlier this year by Android Police. The watches are reportedly codenamed Angelfish and Swordfish and will vary in specifications, but both will be designed around Google's AI assistant. Blass didn't share any extra details other than the Android Wear 2.0 information and the date, but that hints at Google's plans: now that Android Wear 2.0 has …

Demonstrated at this year's CEATEC 2016, Panasonic unveiled a full range of IoT (Internet of Things)smart home products at its "Unique Interface/Unique Experience" exhibition. Its exhibition used existing and in-development technologies to show the kitchen of the not-too-distant future. Shown in the above video, the shelves are kitted out with the company's transparent displays -- sliding glass panels that double as an OLED monitor -- turning ordinary shelves into full sized, high-fidelity TV displays. The Flat Cooker, what looks to be a stylish-yet-ordinary dining room table, is a new concept cooker, where food is cooked directly on the plate by placing a specialised …