An IoT future is coming to hotels in the form of artificial intelligence, voice-activated experiences and virtual reality. Consumers are willing to engage with such technologies if they feel they are in control of their experience, based on a new report. The Hotel 2025 Report by Oracle is based on an audit of 250 restaurant operators, 150 hotel operators and 700 consumers focused on their reactions to the role of technology in the guest experience over the next eight years.

Big companies are betting that the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence will bring about the biggest changes in their businesses and they're putting up money to back that up. Spending on IoT and AI both today and in three years are the top tech areas where companies are making substantial investments, according to a new study by PwC. The tenth annual Global Digital IQ Survey comprised a questionnaire answered by more than 2,200 business and technology executives in 53 countries. Large companies were well represented, with 62% of respondents in organizations with revenue of $1 billion or more and …

There are plenty of innovations surrounding the Internet of Things and Burger King just created another one. The fast food giant created a 15-second TV spot that ends with the words 'OK Google, what is the Whopper burger?' The phrase triggered the Google Home voice assistant along with Android devices to say the ingredients of a Whopper.

One thing for sure about the Internet of Things is that there's a lot of money around it. Research, tracking and forecast stats come out on a regular basis documenting various IoT aspects ranging from the number of wearables being shipped or sold to the overall size of the market. IoT uses range from consumers buying and installing smart devices in their homes to deployments by global corporations aimed at improving efficiency or customer service.

Money is starting to move through voice assistants. Consumers are at the early stages of using voice assistants to order and pay for things. Voice commerce is starting to catch on, with 9% of voice users having used spoken commands to make a purchase, according to a new study.

On one side are connected cars. On the other are consumer preferences and the willingness to pay. Consumer interest in advanced automation for cars has increased since 2014 and all U.S. consumers agree that safety related technologies are useful, based on a newly released study. The catch is that the willingness to pay for these technologies has decreased over the last two years with fewer than half of U.S. consumers surveyed saying they trust traditional manufacturers to bring fully autonomous vehicles to market.

At the monster CES consumer show earlier this year, there was a major focus on voice control, most notably by countless companies adding Amazon Alexa skills to whatever it is they do. And study after study shows consumer interest in voice assistants, whether it be Alexa, Google Home, Samsung's Bixby or Apple's Siri. Now a new study finds that the majority (55%) of U.S. broadband households want to use voice to control their entertainment and smart home devices.

There are two sides to smart home voice assistants. While consumers flock to the devices, including Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri and the new Bixby, the expected benefits ride along with a bevy of concerns. The top benefit of smart home voice assistants is the hands-free capability provided while the top concern is a lack of trust in security, based on a new study.

Plenty of smart and connected devices are ending up in consumers' homes. However, not all devices get there the same way. One of the top IoT services in the home deals with security, in one way or another.

New security methods around connected things may help consumers more safely pay for things they are buying. Biometric identifiers are growing and providing new ways to authenticate who someone is. One method of identification is a fingerprint scan. In 2013, only two smartphone models had fingerprint sensors on them, but by last year, 205 different models had them, according to Juniper Research.