With 60% of Americans using the voice-activated concierge service on their smartphone every day, people are growing accustomed to the idea of interacting with a virtual assistant. Tapping into the trend, Amazon has launched a smart speaker that acts like a home assistant.

Seen an AllSaints leather jacket that you just have to have for tomorrow night, but can't get to a store? For the first time since launching the Amazon Prime programme in 2005, the retail giant is offering members free, next-day shipping on purchases they make on AllSaints.com.

With the spread of technology, companies are exploring the ways household chores can be made more bearable. Amazon is appealing to grocery-hating mothers everywhere with Amazon Dash – the kitchen assistant intended to do for the shopping list what Kindle did for the e-book.

After years of speculation, Amazon finally announced the Fire Phone in June 2014, featuring stereoscopic glasses-free 3D. Its biggest talking point was Firefly – a visual and audio 'Shazam' that lets you buy whatever you scan directly from Amazon. But do people really want this?