Frontier for Connected Society

Samsung Electronics’ voice-activated smart speaker to be unveiled at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) 2018.
Samsung Electronics’ voice-activated smart speaker to be unveiled at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) 2018.

 

Samsung Electronics’ voice-activated smart speaker to be unveiled at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) 2018, the world's largest consumer technology show, early next year, will come in “Wireless 360-Deree Audio” and “All-in-One Soundbar.” The Wireless 360-Deree Audio, which was released by Samsung in 2015, is a portable speaker offering multi-room capabilities with 360 degrees of sound in every room. The All-in-One Soundbar comes with a subwoofer, which tends to output a powerful low-pitched sound, and boasts a sophisticated design that will accentuate your television.

Samsung Electronics has decided to offer the two systems for AI speaker in order to widen customers’ options. While Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator, the first home appliance powered by its Bixby voice assistant, considered the fact that the kitchen is often considered the heart of the home and was designed to help connect the whole family, the Wireless 360-Deree Audio can be used indoors and outdoors and at home and office.

Samsung’s AI speaker powered by Bixby will provide a whole different level of Internet of Things (IoT) experiences rather than just connecting Samsung’s home appliances. Bixby, which is currently introduced in the company’s premium Galaxy S8 smartphone and Family Hub Refrigerator, is continuously learning new situations and contexts based on an interaction with customers. It is also learning and upgraded itself instead of simply performing tasks with voice command. Samsung’s AI speaker will have a stronger voice recognition system and individual account of each family member.

Samsung Electronics plans to establish a hyper-connected society, which can connect between not only home appliances but also financial and medical systems and automobiles, by making use of its AI speakers. Under the Samsung’s mobile environment, Bixby is already connected with Samsung Pay and Samsun Pass, an identity management service through biometric authentication. So, Samsung Electronics will allow customers to use banking services, make a doctor’s appointment and operate a car by talking to the AI speakers at home through the voice command feature. The company held an investor forum in Hong Kong in May and presented its blueprint for the future that creates an ecosystem connecting smartphones, automobiles and financial and medical services. 

With the Samsung’s latest move, not only software-centered companies such as Google and Apple but also hardware-centered ones including LG Electronics are tensed up and seeking to come up with countermeasures. This is because Samsung Electronics, which has already secured the most   contact points with customers with its smartphones and home appliances, is rapidly expanding the areas of its software application. Apple, which has secured loyal customers with iPhones and Siri, has introduced its smart speaker HomePod to expand contact points with customers. However, it has clear limits due to limited kinds of hardware. Google is expanding its dominance of Google Assistant in the home appliance sector with the partnership with LG Electronics.

An official from the industry said, “As soon as Samsung Electronics, which has the strongest hardware prowess, has released Bixby, the company has become the biggest enemy of global companies. Anti-Samsung alliance can be formed in order to stop Samsung from expanding its AI areas.”

 

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