A robot has been unveiled by Japanese carmaker Toyota that could provide companionship for lonely people.
The Kirobo Mini may even have a role as a baby substitute in Japan, where falling birth rates have left many women childless.
The doe-eyed robot is just four inches tall, speaks in a high-pitched baby voice, and will go on sale in Japan for £300.
Fuminori Kataoka, general manager in charge of the project, says its value is emotional, and it could be a faithful companion for the home or the car.
"Toyota has been making cars that have a lot of valuable uses," he said. "But this time we're just pushing emotional value."
The Kirobo Mini is equipped with a camera, microphone and Bluetooth, and connects to a smartphone, which needs to be installed with a special software application.
The Kirobo Mini is equipped with a camera, microphone and Bluetooth, and connects to a smartphone, which needs to be installed with a special software application.
A British man with HIV undergoing a pioneering treatment hopes to become the first in the world to be cured of the virus, it has been reported. Scientists treating the 44-year-old patient said he has shown "remarkable" progress under the therapy, designed to track down and destroy the virus in every part of the body. He is the first of 50 people to complete a trial of the treatment, described as "one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV".
Image Caption:Scientists say it is one of the first serious attempts to find a full cure
HIV is the virus which causes AIDS - which leaves an individual's immune system too weak to be able to fight off infection.
If the bid to find an irreversible cure is successful, it could not only save the NHS millions of pounds but also offer hope to the almost 37 million people living with HIV globally.
Sub-Saharan Africa has the most serious HIV and AIDS epidemic in the world, with Southern Africa the worst affected region.
The trailblazing research is being carried out by a collaboration of five of the UK's top universities organised by the NHS.
Mark Samuels, managing director of the National Institute for Health Research Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure, told the Sunday Times: "This is one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV.
"We are exploring the real possibility of curing HIV.
"This is a huge challenge and it's still early days but the progress has been remarkable."
The trial patient told the newspaper recent blood tests showed no detectable HIV virus was present, although it was too early to confirm that the treatment had worked.
It is possible conventional drugs could have suppressed the virus.
The existing treatment using antiretroviral therapies (ART) is not a cure, as it fails to rid patients of HIV, but can control the virus enabling people to live a longer, healthier life.
The latest research is testing a "kick and kill" technique to first expose then destroy the virus completely.
Hungarians go to the polls today in a referendum that puts further pressure on the European Union after the Brexit vote.
Voters are being asked whether or not to accept EU quotas for migrants and refugees rather than whether they should continue to be members of the EU itself.
The question on the ballot is: "Do you want the European Union to be entitled to proscribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary without the consent of the National Assembly (Parliament)?"
Despite not being a referendum on membership itself, it could follow Brexit in further exposing fault lines across the continent.
Hungary's right wing and nationalist Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, who is regarded as a renegade by some fellow EU leaders, has called on his citizens to vote "no" in the ballot.
Video:September 2015: Migrants ask for help in Hungary
Mr Orban wants Hungarians to reject the EU quota system designed to share the burden of the migrant influx by distributing successful asylum seekers evenly among European countries.
"For us migration is not a solution but a problem ... Not a medicine but a poison. We don't need it and we won't swallow it" Mr Orban said earlier this year.
"Every single migrant poses a public security and terror risk," he said.
The government's campaign to ensure a "no" vote has cost close to £30m.
Government posters and billboards displayed access the country say: "Don't risk it - vote no".
Video:2015: Protesters take to Hungary streets
They all begin with the word "Tudta?", Hungarian for "Did you know?"
One says: "Did you know? Last year one and a half million migrants arrived in Europe."
Another reads: "Did you know? Since the immigration crisis in Europe more than 300 people have died in terror attacks."
What the poster campaign lacks in context, it makes up with in emotionally charged sentiment.
"Did you know? The Paris attacks were carried out by immigrants" another reads, despite the fact that the known Paris attackers were actually EU citizens.
They were raised in France and Belgium though some had posed as refugees when returning from trips to Syria.
Hungary found itself at the centre of the 2015 migration crisis, with tens of thousands of refugees and migrants trying to pass through the country to reach Northern Europe.
Budapest's Keleti train station was a bottleneck with migrants - most from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan - trying to board trains bound for Munich in Germany.
Hungarian government policy was first to push them back, then let some through and then to build a fence to stop more from coming.
The government says its migration policy is the only consistent policy in Europe: to secure its borders and to expel illegal immigrants.
With a nationalist and pro-Christian agenda it has rejected suggestions that it should accept the migrant quota set by Brussels.
In Budapest we joined three young voters for coffee.
Lilla Végvári is the President of Mr Orban's governing party youth organisation and she will be voting "no" to the EU quotas.
"I think this referendum is about our national sovereignty," she said.
"I think Viktor Orban is the only man in Europe who has asked what citizens want. No other politician has ask their persons, voters, citizens what they really want."
Alongside her are Gergely Csaszar and Palma Pasztor, who both say they will spoil their ballot papers.
"If you say yes, you are basically giving up the country's autonomy and sovereignty which is unacceptable," Mr Csaszar said.
"But a no vote is also unacceptable because it doesn't make a difference between refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, it doesn't differentiate between people coming into the country. You cannot just say no to everyone."
Ms Pasztor adds: "When someone comes here and asks for help, it's a duty to help them."
Some say the referendum is just a ploy by Mr Orban to bolster his power with a populist agenda and divert attention away from other domestic pressures.
They argue that with a misleading poster campaign generating a fear of immigrants, Mr Orban can be seen to be strong against manufactured threats from immigrants.
In doing that, he presents himself as an anti-Angela Merkel figure on the European stage; a leader who stands against Brussels-led federalist control and, in his words, "liberal blah blah".
The result is widely expected to be a win for Mr Orban, with most voting "no".
The "yes" vote count is expected to be the smallest, with many others choosing either to spoil their ballot or not vote at all.
While not legally binding, a win for Mr Orban with a voter turnout of over 50% would prove that, in this EU nation at least, nationalism trumps liberalism.
It will be a poke in the eye for an increasingly fragile European Union.
Hungarians go to the polls today in a referendum that puts further pressure on the European Union after the Brexit vote.
Voters are being asked whether or not to accept EU quotas for migrants and refugees rather than whether they should continue to be members of the EU itself.
The question on the ballot is: "Do you want the European Union to be entitled to proscribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary without the consent of the National Assembly (Parliament)?"
Despite not being a referendum on membership itself, it could follow Brexit in further exposing fault lines across the continent.
Hungary's right wing and nationalist Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, who is regarded as a renegade by some fellow EU leaders, has called on his citizens to vote "no" in the ballot.
Video:September 2015: Migrants ask for help in Hungary
Mr Orban wants Hungarians to reject the EU quota system designed to share the burden of the migrant influx by distributing successful asylum seekers evenly among European countries.
"For us migration is not a solution but a problem ... Not a medicine but a poison. We don't need it and we won't swallow it" Mr Orban said earlier this year.
"Every single migrant poses a public security and terror risk," he said.
The government's campaign to ensure a "no" vote has cost close to £30m.
Government posters and billboards displayed access the country say: "Don't risk it - vote no".
Video:2015: Protesters take to Hungary streets
They all begin with the word "Tudta?", Hungarian for "Did you know?"
One says: "Did you know? Last year one and a half million migrants arrived in Europe."
Another reads: "Did you know? Since the immigration crisis in Europe more than 300 people have died in terror attacks."
What the poster campaign lacks in context, it makes up with in emotionally charged sentiment.
"Did you know? The Paris attacks were carried out by immigrants" another reads, despite the fact that the known Paris attackers were actually EU citizens.
They were raised in France and Belgium though some had posed as refugees when returning from trips to Syria.
Hungary found itself at the centre of the 2015 migration crisis, with tens of thousands of refugees and migrants trying to pass through the country to reach Northern Europe.
Budapest's Keleti train station was a bottleneck with migrants - most from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan - trying to board trains bound for Munich in Germany.
Hungarian government policy was first to push them back, then let some through and then to build a fence to stop more from coming.
The government says its migration policy is the only consistent policy in Europe: to secure its borders and to expel illegal immigrants.
With a nationalist and pro-Christian agenda it has rejected suggestions that it should accept the migrant quota set by Brussels.
In Budapest we joined three young voters for coffee.
Lilla Végvári is the President of Mr Orban's governing party youth organisation and she will be voting "no" to the EU quotas.
"I think this referendum is about our national sovereignty," she said.
"I think Viktor Orban is the only man in Europe who has asked what citizens want. No other politician has ask their persons, voters, citizens what they really want."
Alongside her are Gergely Csaszar and Palma Pasztor, who both say they will spoil their ballot papers.
"If you say yes, you are basically giving up the country's autonomy and sovereignty which is unacceptable," Mr Csaszar said.
"But a no vote is also unacceptable because it doesn't make a difference between refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, it doesn't differentiate between people coming into the country. You cannot just say no to everyone."
Ms Pasztor adds: "When someone comes here and asks for help, it's a duty to help them."
Some say the referendum is just a ploy by Mr Orban to bolster his power with a populist agenda and divert attention away from other domestic pressures.
They argue that with a misleading poster campaign generating a fear of immigrants, Mr Orban can be seen to be strong against manufactured threats from immigrants.
In doing that, he presents himself as an anti-Angela Merkel figure on the European stage; a leader who stands against Brussels-led federalist control and, in his words, "liberal blah blah".
The result is widely expected to be a win for Mr Orban, with most voting "no".
The "yes" vote count is expected to be the smallest, with many others choosing either to spoil their ballot or not vote at all.
While not legally binding, a win for Mr Orban with a voter turnout of over 50% would prove that, in this EU nation at least, nationalism trumps liberalism.
It will be a poke in the eye for an increasingly fragile European Union.
Hungarians go to the polls today in a referendum that puts further pressure on the European Union after the Brexit vote.
Voters are being asked whether or not to accept EU quotas for migrants and refugees rather than whether they should continue to be members of the EU itself.
The question on the ballot is: "Do you want the European Union to be entitled to proscribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary without the consent of the National Assembly (Parliament)?"
Despite not being a referendum on membership itself, it could follow Brexit in further exposing fault lines across the continent.
Hungary's right wing and nationalist Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, who is regarded as a renegade by some fellow EU leaders, has called on his citizens to vote "no" in the ballot.
Video:September 2015: Migrants ask for help in Hungary
Mr Orban wants Hungarians to reject the EU quota system designed to share the burden of the migrant influx by distributing successful asylum seekers evenly among European countries.
"For us migration is not a solution but a problem ... Not a medicine but a poison. We don't need it and we won't swallow it" Mr Orban said earlier this year.
"Every single migrant poses a public security and terror risk," he said.
The government's campaign to ensure a "no" vote has cost close to £30m.
Government posters and billboards displayed access the country say: "Don't risk it - vote no".
Video:2015: Protesters take to Hungary streets
They all begin with the word "Tudta?", Hungarian for "Did you know?"
One says: "Did you know? Last year one and a half million migrants arrived in Europe."
Another reads: "Did you know? Since the immigration crisis in Europe more than 300 people have died in terror attacks."
What the poster campaign lacks in context, it makes up with in emotionally charged sentiment.
"Did you know? The Paris attacks were carried out by immigrants" another reads, despite the fact that the known Paris attackers were actually EU citizens.
They were raised in France and Belgium though some had posed as refugees when returning from trips to Syria.
Hungary found itself at the centre of the 2015 migration crisis, with tens of thousands of refugees and migrants trying to pass through the country to reach Northern Europe.
Budapest's Keleti train station was a bottleneck with migrants - most from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan - trying to board trains bound for Munich in Germany.
Hungarian government policy was first to push them back, then let some through and then to build a fence to stop more from coming.
The government says its migration policy is the only consistent policy in Europe: to secure its borders and to expel illegal immigrants.
With a nationalist and pro-Christian agenda it has rejected suggestions that it should accept the migrant quota set by Brussels.
In Budapest we joined three young voters for coffee.
Lilla Végvári is the President of Mr Orban's governing party youth organisation and she will be voting "no" to the EU quotas.
"I think this referendum is about our national sovereignty," she said.
"I think Viktor Orban is the only man in Europe who has asked what citizens want. No other politician has ask their persons, voters, citizens what they really want."
Alongside her are Gergely Csaszar and Palma Pasztor, who both say they will spoil their ballot papers.
"If you say yes, you are basically giving up the country's autonomy and sovereignty which is unacceptable," Mr Csaszar said.
"But a no vote is also unacceptable because it doesn't make a difference between refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, it doesn't differentiate between people coming into the country. You cannot just say no to everyone."
Ms Pasztor adds: "When someone comes here and asks for help, it's a duty to help them."
Some say the referendum is just a ploy by Mr Orban to bolster his power with a populist agenda and divert attention away from other domestic pressures.
They argue that with a misleading poster campaign generating a fear of immigrants, Mr Orban can be seen to be strong against manufactured threats from immigrants.
In doing that, he presents himself as an anti-Angela Merkel figure on the European stage; a leader who stands against Brussels-led federalist control and, in his words, "liberal blah blah".
The result is widely expected to be a win for Mr Orban, with most voting "no".
The "yes" vote count is expected to be the smallest, with many others choosing either to spoil their ballot or not vote at all.
While not legally binding, a win for Mr Orban with a voter turnout of over 50% would prove that, in this EU nation at least, nationalism trumps liberalism.
It will be a poke in the eye for an increasingly fragile European Union.
The US is preparing to evacuate its base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba over the threat from Hurricane Matthew.
The base, notorious as the site of a detention facility for captives from the Afghanistan war, is in the current predicted path of the storm.
Category 4 Matthew, the most powerful storm in the Caribbean since 2007, is making its way north with 150mph (240kph) winds.
Its centre is now expected to miss Jamaica but to barrel across southwest Haiti before smashing into eastern Cuba, where Guantanamo is situated.
Jamaica is still forecast to suffer up to 25 inches (63cm) of rain, while Haiti could receive up to 40 inches (101cm).
Image Caption:The direction of travel that Matthew is currently predicted to be taking
The US National Hurricane Center said the rain is likely to trigger life-threatening landslides and floods.
The latest forecast has Matthew hitting southern Haiti at 8pm (EDT) on Monday and reaching Cuba about 12 hours later.
Haiti has started evacuating residents of small, exposed sandy islands in the south who want to leave.
Albert Moulion, Haiti's interior ministry spokesman, said: "We have already started evacuations," he said. "The national center of emergency operations has been activated."
Image Caption:Jamaicans are battening down windows and doors in preparation for the hurricane's arrival
The US Navy said about 700 spouses and children are due to be airlifted to Florida from its base on Cuba to wait until the storm passes by.
A spokesman said in a statement: "The remaining military and civilian personnel will shelter in place and be able to support recovery efforts once safe to do so following the storm's passage."
The Dominican Republic also issued a tropical storm warning.
The NHC said: "Maximum sustained winds remain near 150 mph... with higher gusts. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles (35 km) from the center, and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 205 miles (335 km).
Image Caption:Haitians are worried that up to one metre of forecast rain could result in widespread flooding
"Matthew is forecast to remain a powerful hurricane until it interacts with the high terrain of Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic) and eastern Cuba in about 48 hours or so.
"Once Matthew reaches the Bahamas, the upper-level environment and warm waters will favor some restrengthening."
It is feared the storm could move on to affect the Bahamas and the east coast of the United States, although the path is difficult to predict.
Countries likely to be affected are fearful of the effect it could have on their economies.
Image Caption:The National Hurricane Center's prediction for wind speeds in the area around Matthew
In Jamaica, which has been suffering a long economic slowdown, there are worries the hurricane could affect tourist destinations such as Montego Bay in the island's north.
Many continued to prepare for the worst, buying up supplies and battening down windows and doors.
One shopper in Jamaica's capital Kingston, weather forecaster Ennis St Patrice, told Reuters: "We've had these kind of occurrences in the past and it is generally bad, because Jamaica does not have proper infrastructure.
Theresa May has revealed the formal process for Britain to leave the EU will be triggered by the end of March.
Activating Article 50 paves the way for official Brexit talks to get under way and starts the two-year countdown for the UK's departure.
It puts Britain on course to leave the EU by summer 2019.
The Prime Minister made the announcement at the start of the Tory party conference in Birmingham, where the break from Brussels is set to dominate the agenda.
Mrs May could be hoping in setting a date she will take the sting out of the Brexit debate, but arguments are set to continue over the kind of relationship the UK will have with the bloc in future.
It comes as the PM revealed she was to introduce a "Great Repeal Bill" in the next Queen's Speech to scrap the legislation that took Britain into Europe 44 years ago.
Sky News understands that moves will be made to remove the European Communities Act from the statute book next year.
EU law and regulations will then be converted into domestic law and subsequently removed, kept or changed, depending on what the UK Parliament decides.
This process could take years - meaning many EU laws could be in force long after the day Britain formally leaves the union.
Ahead of her speech on Brexit to activists in Birmingham, Mrs May told BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "As you know, I have been saying that we wouldn't trigger it before the end of this year so that we get some preparation in place.
"But yes, I will be saying in my speech today that we will trigger (Article 50) before the end of March next year."
Mrs May has also ruled out holding a general election before 2020 - warning an early vote would cause "instability".
Brexit Secretary David Davis has said the Government will "take a simple approach" over changes to legislation.
He said: "EU law will be transposed into domestic law, wherever practical, on exit day.
"It will be for elected politicians here to make the changes to reflect the outcome of our negotiation and our exit."
The "Great Repeal Bill" will end the supremacy of EU law, meaning rulings by the European Court of Justice will stop applying to the UK once the legislation takes effect.
Mr Davis added: "That is what people voted for: power and authority residing once again with the sovereign institutions of our own country."
Former attorney general Dominic Grieve said: "The key issue is that this proposal if adopted will not provide a solution for long as divergence between our law and EU law will begin immediately.
"This will not provide reassurance to business wanting a level playing field with the EU. It is not clear if we would mirror EU law thereafter."
It is also understood former Education Secretary Nicky Morgan warn at the conference that a "hard Brexit" - in which the UK rejects the EU single market and closes its borders to European citizens - could lead to bigotry.
According to The Observer, she will say in her speech: "There are those for whom the referendum result is not enough - they want use to have a 'hard Brexit' that cuts us off from the EU... and allows people to say things about their fellow citizens that promote intolerance and bigotry."
