Kevin Tang, a 13-year-old from California, has developed FallGuard, a system that uses cameras and an algorithm to detect falls and alert caregivers. Tang was inspired to create the system after his grandmother fell, resulting in permanent brain damage, and he hopes to keep the system affordable or even free. FallGuard does not require a subscription or wearable devices, and Tang, the winner of this year's Top Young Scientist award, has already received interest from a security camera company.

Smart home technology is evolving into innovative territory with gadgets such as the Ecovacs WinBot W2, a robot window cleaner; the Kohler Health Dekoda, a health monitor that tracks wellbeing through bathroom visits; and the MAGIC AI Fitness Smart Mirror, which acts as a personal trainer, writes Lizzie Wilmot. Other notable devices included in Wilmot's roundup are the SwitchBot Candle Warmer Lamp, the Willow Hub for plant care, the Keenon W3 Room Service Butlerbot, and the Dreame Matrix10 Ultra, a robot vacuum with advanced navigation.

Waymo plans to offer 1 million trips per week by the end of next year as it expands, co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana says. Mawakana emphasizes the importance of transparency and safety in autonomous vehicle technology, noting that "it is imperative that we scale."

Microsoft has introduced Mico, an AI assistant for Copilot designed as a modern successor to Clippy and Cortana that responds with facial expressions based on your queries. Mico leverages a memory feature to recall user information and activities and includes Learn Live mode, which acts as a Socratic tutor that can step through answers. And yes, it can also be disabled.