Though well-received by Apple fans, the HomePod hasn't exactly met expectations as far as sales go. But a newly discovered patent suggests that Apple might be about to dramatically overhaul the smart speaker with everything from facial recognition to a high-res touchscreen. Will it be enough?

This year's results are in for Loup Ventures' annual Smart Speaker IQ test. The test, which consists of 800 annually updated questions, measures how well the digital voice assistant employed by each device understands each question and answers each question correctly. Who won? Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri, or Cortana?

Privacy often seems to be at odds with government surveillance and smart assistant technologies like Siri and Cortana. But do we need to sacrifice one for the other? We asked experts in a variety of fields to find out what a future without privacy might look like and whether that's really such a bad thing.

Your voice assistant may not be as safe as you think it is. According to researchers in Germany, the Alexas, Siris, and Assistants of the world can be hacked with manipulated audio files that hide hidden commands. They may sound like birds chirping to a human, but A.I. assistants can hear secret messages.

A new patent suggests that a major improvement may be in the works for Apple's digital assistant. Apple may soon work on implementing multiuser support for Siri, which could provide practical and privacy-related benefits. All we have right now is a patent, which does not mean Apple is actively working on this software.

Has Siri ever piped up seemingly out of the blue? It happened to a leading member of the U.K. government this week as he was giving a speech to the British parliament. Apple's digital assistant apparently mistook the mention of "Syria" for "Hey, Siri," causing it to offer up some information on the war-torn country.

I have multiple devices that I can talk to, and outside of telling Siri to turn off the lights when I go to bed (because I’m a lazy, terribly person), I don’t talk to a single one of them. In fact, I’ve disabled the voice-activation function of all the ones that I can. I don’t like talking to my devices. I find it silly, and I don’t find it makes my life any easier.

Did you know your Apple HomePod can do way more than play music? If you don't already know these HomePod tips and tricks, you'll be glad you read them. Learn about how to unlock the full set of features available on your HomePod.

Alexa was never a top-10 U.S. baby girl name, but now, after Amazon used the name for the Echo smart speaker voice assistant, even fewer parents choose it for their newborns. Siri is a much less popular name for girls in the U.S. than Alexa, but it too has seen a decline. "Hey, Google" was never a contender.

Amazon's Alexa and Microsoft's Cortana saw strong improvement over last year, but Google Assistant still leads the pack when it comes to A.I. Siri, on the other hand, did not fare so well.

You may not be the only one controlling your smart assistant -- savvy advertisers are in on the game, too. Per a new report from Apple Insider, there's an NBA on TNT ad that features the phrase, "Don't wanna miss out? Hey Siri show me the NBA schedule," which triggers the HomePod, much to many a user's chagrin. 

Apple has been awarded a new patent that could prove that the company is actively working on improving Siri. The patent describes technology that can recognize new words and phrases -- essentially helping prevent the digital assistant from getting outdated.

Hints pop up that Apple may have many more changes in store for future iPhones, Tim Cook nabs a top A.I. guy from Google, we talk with the designers behind Jaguar's impressive I-Pace EV.

Siri launched several years before Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant, but it has fallen behind in terms of usability and features. That could be about to change.

It would appear that Apple is looking to hire tons and tons of bright minds to work on Siri, but Amazon is hiring even more for Alexa.

Apple has embarked on a major recruitment drive in recent months to bolster its team of engineers working on Siri.

Apple HomePod users are apparently complaining about white rings left on their wooden tables from the device. Apple suggested that users refinish their furniture to remove it if it doesn't fade.

Apple's long-awaited HomePod smart speaker is finally here, and to ensure new owners get the most out of it, the tech giant has posted an official user guide.

Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa dominated CES 2018, through compatibility with nearly every smarthome device we saw. But Apple HomeKit and Siri were barely seen. What gives?

Alexa continued to rack up integration wins at CES this year, and Google is struggling to keep pace. Is it too late for Microsoft and Apple?

There may be times, such as when you're out and about, when you'd prefer Siri to whisper back its response. Apple is looking into the idea.

Apple's anticipated smart speaker, the HomePod, will not be released in December as planned. Instead fans will have to wait until 2018.

Wetwire Robotics, launched a Kickstarter campaign to build animatronic talking toys that integrate with Alexa, Siri and More.

Google is now the default search engine for Siri and Spotlight on iOS and MacOS. But Bing will continue to serve up image results.

In iOS 11, users can enter commands for Siri instead of having to speak out loud. Here's how you can enable the Type to Siri feature.

Bringing light into your life may have gotten a bit easier with the official introduction of the Sylvania Smart+ light bulbs.

As per a new report from Verto Analytics, Siri has experienced a 15-percent decline in monthly users since last year.

In the job market? Here's an option -- on Monday, Apple posted a new job description for a role called the Siri Event Maven.

Also today: Microsoft goofs up a Win10 update, and Wonder Woman is set to rule the box office this weekend, so check out our review.

Apple's virtual assistant isn't the easiest piece of tech to grasp. Here's how to set it up, and make use of its robust functionality.

Christopher Beaucher says that if it weren't for Siri, he may not have lived to tell the tale of how he escaped an exploding house.

Apple is said to be moving toward finalizing the design of its Amazon Echo speaker, suggesting it could be unveiled in the coming months.

Samsung's virtual assistant for the Galaxy S8, Bixby, has gained its voice in Korea this week, and is showing off its rapping skills.

The Genie is a Bluetooth speaker that lets you use Siri or Google Now in more than 50 different languages and dialects.