Philips is developing the technology as a contactless system to keep a virtual eye on hospital patients, such as newborn babies, who might find conventional monitors distressing.

ECONOMIST: Facial monitoring

Currently, there is an exception for personal jailbreaking (allowing individuals to install unapproved applications by altering the phone's operating system), but developing, selling, trafficking or discussing the underlying technology is still illegal and there are no personal exceptions for tablets or other devices.

CNN: Unlocking your cell phone is no crime

Moon Express is developing a smaller, lighter system that costs a tenth of comparable current NASA technology.

FORBES: Names You Need To Know: Moon Express

The government has established state-owned enterprise zones such as the Chengdu Internet of Things Technology Institute in Sichuan province, which is developing a health care system in which rural villagers can step into a telephone booth-sized "health capsule" to get a diagnosis and prescription from a doctor in a distant hospital.

CNN: China looks to lead the Internet of Things

Microsoft is also developing its own search technology and ultimately plans to integrate it into Windows, the operating system that runs 94% of the world's personal computers.

ECONOMIST: The internet