Are you a Python coder looking for a simple way to dip your toes into the artificial intelligence waters? A new open source virtual assistant project may be just what you're looking for.

The VQuad™ and VQT Python libraries provide a range of Python functions which can be used to remotely or locally control these two applications.

Google has released a set of Python and Java libraries that help developers who use Google App Engine integrate text messaging and voice communications into their apps.

Rather than plug into an existing system, he rolled his own by combining open source packages for controlling his various smart devices with the aptly named SpeechRecognition library for Python.