In the realm of AI-powered voice assistants, Samsung has found itself lagging behind over the last ten years. Bixby, its voice assistant, has struggled to match up to the capabilities of competitors like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri.
Nevertheless, it appears that Samsung has ambitious intentions for Bixby in the upcoming years. The company recently unveiled its grand strategy to infuse Bixby with advanced Generative AI capabilities, intending to deploy it across all forthcoming home appliances. This move underscores Samsung’s determination to revitalize Bixby’s performance and integrate it more extensively into its ecosystem of smart home devices.
The Generative AI will Boost Bixby Next Year
During its IFA 2023 press conference, Samsung made an exciting announcement about its plans for Bixby. The company shared its intention to integrate Generative AI capabilities into Bixby, a move that could potentially elevate its performance and capabilities. Additionally, Samsung revealed its strategic move to extend the presence of Bixby and Tizen, its operating system, to all of its home appliances starting from the upcoming year.
Generative AI, a cutting-edge technology found in innovations like ChatGPT, Dall-E, and Google Bard, empowers AI tools to comprehend intricate sentences and provide information from multiple angles. This advancement enables more versatile interactions and responses. While the current generation of appliances and smart home devices equipped with Bixby can understand straightforward, precise voice commands, the next-generation products fueled by the enhanced version of Bixby will be able to interpret complex sentences with nuanced meanings.
This expansion of Bixby’s capabilities could debut on smartphones and tablets, showcasing Samsung’s commitment to bringing sophisticated AI experiences to users across various devices.
Miyoung Yoo, the Vice President of Samsung Electronics’ Home Appliances Division, recently shared insights into the company’s AI-driven vision for home appliances. Yoo emphasized that all Samsung Electronics home appliances will incorporate AI technology, with even water purifiers featuring core AI functions. This strategic approach aims to transcend the realm of connected appliances, focusing on providing tailored solutions by understanding customers’ daily routines and learning patterns.
Yoo envisions a future where home appliances evolve beyond their fundamental roles, offering personalized operations based on individual behaviors and usage patterns. However, Yoo clarified that the upcoming version of Bixby, Samsung’s AI assistant, won’t be as robust as services like ChatGPT or Google Bard.
While discussing the concept of generative AI, Yoo highlighted that the goal isn’t to create a heavy-duty service akin to ChatGPT. Instead, Samsung aims to enhance Bixby’s understanding of conversational context, enabling more natural and intuitive communication. As an example, Yoo referred to the Bespoke Family Hub refrigerator equipped with a sizable 32-inch screen. In the future, consumers might be able to issue complex voice commands like “It’s raining, and I’m in a bad mood, so please display a suitable background.”
Yoo’s insights underscore Samsung’s commitment to leveraging AI to create smarter, more responsive home appliances that enhance daily life through seamless interactions and personalized experiences.
Samsung is Producing Tizen RT, a Lightweight Version, for All Future Home Products
Samsung is making bold strides in advancing its future line of home appliances with innovative technology. As part of its forward-looking strategy, the company intends to integrate the lightweight Tizen RT operating system into all upcoming home appliances. While premium devices like TVs and refrigerators already operate on the comprehensive Tizen OS, this expansion aims to extend the benefits of advanced technology to a wider range of products.
To enable these advancements, Samsung is in the process of developing a Micro Processor Unit (MPU) that will serve as the foundation for Tizen RT and Bixby’s Generative AI features across all future home appliances.
Notably, Samsung proudly highlights that over 15 million devices are already powered by the Tizen OS, a figure projected to reach 20 million by the year’s end. The company may further showcase the anticipated capabilities of the upcoming iterations of Bixby, Tizen, and Tizen RT at the forthcoming Samsung Developer Conference 2023 event, scheduled for October 5th.