Guest speakers at CES 2015 Opening Keynote – Alex Hawkinson, SmartThings

Open platform, open innovation, open communication between different devices… Being open is a critical aspect in building a successful eco-system for the Internet of Things (IoT). As a part of its drive to address this, Samsung last year acquired SmartThings, creator of the leading open platform for IoT. SmartThings continued to operate independently under its founder and CEO Alex Hawkinson as part of the Samsung Open Innovation Center (OIC).

At the CES 2015 Opening Keynote, as BK Yoon, President and CEO at Samsung Electronics, addressed the world on IoT, Hawkinson was also there to share his two cents. Now, working with Samsung as a part of Samsung, SmartThings’ services not only work with all of Samsung’s wearable devices like Gear S and all its connected appliances, it’s been expanding ever since.

Hawkinson explained that the SmartThings ecosystem is now compatible with more devices than any other IoT or smart home platform in the world. “It gives consumers the freedom of choice across all top IoT services and applications — from security and energy savings to entertainment, health and beyond.”

Along with new SmartThings Hub and Sensors and an optional Premium Service, SmartThings also announced new integrations on the open platform including Netgear and D-Link cameras, Somfy window shades, Philips hue lighting, Honeywell thermostats, Chamberlain garage door openers and more. All its services will be available nationwide in April.

Also, as each person, family and country has different needs, a large, no, a huge developer community is required – you need all the inspiration and imagination from the different people. Not only the IoT software and IoT hardware, we need a truly open approach that embraces developers. Well, according to Hawkinson, “the number of developers working with the SmartThings platform has doubled since the partnership with Samsung.”

For more about what Alex Hawkinson had to share at the CES 2015 Opening Keynote, check out the video below: