DJ Koh, President and CEO of IT & Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics

Samsung Electronics today announced, at the Samsung Developer Conference 2019 (SDC19), new ways its platforms will enable developers to introduce simpler, more powerful experiences to consumers around the world. Samsung shared its vision for the next era of mobile and connected living, offering inspiration to developers, enterprise leaders, and consumers through innovative experiences with the devices they rely on every day.

“We are fortunate to work with the world’s best developers and designers. Together, we have built an extensive and secure ecosystem of devices and services,” said DJ Koh, President and CEO of IT & Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics. “We continue to make progress toward our vision to be the innovator of new mobile experiences that flow seamlessly and continuously wherever we go.”

Creating Opportunities for Developers through Open, Scalable AI and IoT Platforms

ES Chung, EVP and Head of Software and AI, Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics, outlines plans to enrich Bixby to offer users “countless new ways to integrate intelligence into everything you do.”

To help consumers discover new ways Bixby can work with them to get things done more quickly and easily, Samsung launched Bixby Marketplace earlier this year, creating a way for developers to introduce their Bixby capsules to millions of Bixby users. In the past six months, the size of the Bixby developer community has doubled. And starting in 2020, the Bixby Marketplace will expand gradually, enabling developers to offer their services across more Samsung devices.

To make it easier for developers to create new experiences on its AI platform and ensure consumers have more intuitive experience, Samsung announced enhanced capabilities in the Bixby Developer Studio at SDC19.

• New Bixby Templates makes it easy for developers to create capsules using pre-existing forms so that they don’t have to start from scratch.
• Enhanced Bixby Views enable developers to build capsules with a consistent design even beyond smartphones—to televisions, tablets, smart watches and refrigerators.
• Developers can now register their capsules under Natural Language Categories. When users ask Bixby for help related to a category—such as radio, news, or navigation—Bixby suggests a capsule that can help them get what they need more quickly and easily, even without having to call out exact name of the capsule.

Larry Heck, CEO of Viv Labs, Samsung Electronics, introduces new Natural Language Categories, which simplify how users engage with and discover Bixby capsules.

More consumers than ever are seeing how seamlessly connected devices and services can make everyday life easier. Developers can scale their device and service offerings through Samsung’s IoT platform, SmartThings. Already, developers and partners have brought connected experiences to more than 45 million monthly active users and thousands of compatible devices, and the platform is expected to grow further with the Work as a SmartThings Hub (WASH) program, which allows partners like network operators to embed SmartThings Hub software into their devices.

To help developers build on and integrate existing devices with the SmartThings platform, Samsung announced new capabilities for developers:

• The new Rules API brings to life more automated smart home experiences to reflect individual daily routines across a broad range of SmartThings devices.
• Samsung is launching the SmartThings Device SDK Beta program in early 2020 to enable more third-party manufacturers to create SmartThings-compatible devices.

Samsung continues to invite developers to actively participate in its ecosystem and supports the developer community with several incentive programs—including the Best of Galaxy Store Award, the Samsung Mobile Design Competition, Bixby DevJam and the Samsung Mobile Security Reward program.

Inspiring Developers with New Experiences Across Devices

Samsung continued to refine the mobile experience to allow users to focus on what matters most to them. One UI 2 includes new features that declutter the user interface—making it easier for people to interact naturally, while also making it easier on their eyes. And now, to make both the developer and the user experiences consistent across devices, Samsung is expanding the use of One UI 2 beyond smartphones to tablets, wearables, and new form factors, including foldables.

Sally Hyesoon Jeong, VP and Head of Framework R&D Group, Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics, introduces an all-new, compact form factor for foldable devices.

With the launch of Galaxy Fold, Samsung designed a first-of-its kind mobile experience that is much more than a foldable device. Samsung, alongside hundreds of developers and partners, created an entire foldable ecosystem that continues grow and opens up new possibilities to the mobile experience. As promised at SDC last year, Samsung will continue to explore a range of new form factors in the foldable category. And at SDC19, Samsung invited developers and users alike to join the exploration of exciting new use cases and user experiences.

To deliver the best possible TV viewing experience, Samsung is also investing in 8K technologies. With AI ScaleNet, Samsung has made it possible to stream high-quality 8K videos on networks with lower bandwidth capabilities. Samsung has also announced new tools that make it easier for developers to bring new experiences across the nearly 100 million Smart TVs that are powered by Tizen.

• Wits automatically uploads a code edit to the TV, so developers can see their update almost immediately, significantly trimming development time.
• EasyST makes testing content playback much easier because developers don’t need to build their own test app to make sure their content is streaming as intended.
• TIFA (Tizen Identifier for Advertising) gives consumers the option to limit ad tracking or opt-out of targeted advertising
• Samsung is making Tizen TV OS available to third-party TV makers for the first time.

End-to-End Security Built in Every Solution and Experience

Terry Halvorsen, CIO and EVP, IT of Mobile Communications B2G Business, Samsung Electronics, discusses the importance of stout security solutions like Samsung Knox – particularly in today’s hyperconnected world.

Emerging technologies, such as IoT, AI and 5G, are bringing new capabilities and opportunities to the developer landscape. For Samsung, it means providing the community with the tools and programs necessary to deliver secure and reliable solutions.

Secure Development Lifecycle delivers systematic reviews at every phase of the development, supply chain, and manufacturing process. To give both developers and users peace of mind, Samsung offers the Knox SDK, allowing partners and app developers to integrate advanced security solutions to their apps and services. In addition, Samsung has been working with German government agencies, especially BSI, and industry partners on developing a mobile-enabled eID for digital services to support customers and governments by developing a solid foundation for trusted identity services.

Seungyun Lee, Principal Engineer, Knox Platform for Enterprise, Samsung Electronics, discusses features that make Samsung Knox attractive to developers. “Knox is software that is built around hardware root of trust, not just implemented after the device is built” Lee explains, “giving it a foundation like no other security system in the market.”

Samsung invites developers and partners on its journey to bring new and secure experiences to life. For more information about working with Samsung and the Samsung Developer Conference 2019, please visit sdc.developer.samsung.com. Further information can also be found on Twitter (@samsung_dev) and using the hashtag #SDC19

SDC19’s keynote event was packed with people eager to learn more about Samsung’s latest innovations

About Samsung Developer Conference
SDC brings together thousands of developers and creators to explore today’s tech and visualize what’s possible in the future. The two-day conference will feature exciting keynote announcements, technical sessions and valuable networking time. Plus, Samsung product teams and technology partners will showcase the latest tech advances and tools.

* All services and programs mentioned above may vary by region

1. Faster, more transparent machine learning

Artificial intelligence (AI) will dramatically expand within the next 12 months. It is already changing the way people interact with a number of applications, platforms and services across both consumer and enterprise environments.

In the next couple of years, there will be new approaches on two fronts. Firstly, less data will be required to train an algorithm. This means an image recognition system that currently needs 100,000 images to learn how to operate will only need a small fraction of that number. This will make it easier to quickly implement powerful machine learning systems.

Secondly, the technology will become more transparent. Advances in technology will mean researchers will be able to open the black box of AI and more clearly explain why a particular model made the decision it did. Currently, a lot of academia and start-ups are putting much effort into understanding how a machine makes decisions, how the models are learning from the data and what are the parameters of data that influence the models.

Scott Phoenix, The CEO of Vicarious, makes a presentation about human-level intelligent robots at the Samsung CEO Summit last October in San Francisco. (source: www.vicarious.com)

Samsung plans to build an AI platform under a common architecture that will provide the deepest understanding of usage context and behaviors. This is one of the core strategies to make the user-centric AI ecosystem. Samsung NEXT has also invested in various companies innovating in the field, including Vicarious, a company developing neuroscience-based artificial general intelligence (AGI) for robots for simpler deployment with faster training and Bonsai, which develops an AI platform that empowers enterprises to create, deploy and manage AI models, and FloydHub, a start-up that has developed a cloud service for machine learning.

2. New AR and VR form factors and viewing models

Both augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are increasingly being relied upon to create more immersive worlds where technology enables users to get more hands-on with virtual overlays and environments. In the case of AR, devices won’t remove us from our world, but will rather enable us to have objects appear as if they were really there.

2018 will witness more developers embracing AR, starting to make interesting applications moving beyond the world of gaming. One such example is a furniture company planning to make its full catalogue available in AR. Samsung NEXT has invested in companies like 8i, which provides a platform that enables true 3D (fully volumetric) video capture of people, allowing viewers to walk around as real humans in VR and AR.

8i’s Holo augmented reality application enables digital recreation of people and characters to be seen in the real world through a smartphone camera. (source: www.8i.com)

Head Mounted Displays (HMDs) will see foundational technology improvements in the quality of their displays, sensors, and materials. In 2018, there will be a lot of excitement in the industry in the form of M&A and investment activities. “For VR, we will see more standalone devices, falling between existing HMDs powered by mobile phones, and high-end hardware connected to powerful PCs. This will enable more people to experience the technology in new ways,” said Ajay Singh, Samsung NEXT Ventures.

3. Blockchain to look beyond cryptocurrencies

“In 2017, we saw blockchain technology increasingly applied to develop unbanked countries and communities,” said Raymond Liao from Ventures. “With underpinnings in peer-to-peer transactions, blockchain has the power to democratize transactions by removing the middleman and reducing the needless fees that so frequently hamstring those deprived of banking services.”

Cryptocurrency is the dominant killer application for blockchain up to now. However, we will see blockchain entrepreneurs and decentralization idealists, freshly financed by token sales, marching to either empower consumers against the one-sided data monetization paradigm, or break up enterprise data silos in, e.g., supply chain and healthcare industries.

Samsung’s focus on security will be an advantage for the company as far as blockchain is concerned. The elephant in the room around blockchain is that the entire technology is only as secure as the users’ keys. Samsung’s technology enables enterprise customers to be assured of a certain level of security in how their employees interact with their blockchain-based apps. Furthermore, Samsung NEXT includes in its portfolio companies like HYPR that provides enterprise with enhanced security and user experience using blockchain and Filament that secures Internet of Things (IoT) devices with their blockchain protocol.

4. IoT to put power in the hands of healthcare patients

Healthcare is an industry that is ripe for disruption. We will begin to see the power of IoT in healthcare with the emergence of inexpensive, continuous ways to capture and share our data, as well as derive insights that inform and empower patients. Moreover, wearable adoption will create a massive stream of real-time health data beyond the doctor’s office, which will significantly improve diagnosis, compliance and treatment. In short, a person’s trip to the doctor will start to look different – but for the right reasons.

Samsung is using IoT and AI to improve efficiency in healthcare. Samsung NEXT has invested in startups in this area, such as Glooko which helps people with diabetes by uploading the patient’s glucose data to the cloud to make it easier to access and analyse them. Another noteworthy investment in this space from Samsung NEXT is HealthifyMe, an Indian company whose mobile app connects AI-enabled human coaches with people seeking diet and exercise advice.

(source: www.healthifyme.com)

Samsung is uniquely positioned among tech companies in that it already has a significant business in healthcare. The company has solutions in wearables, hospital screens and tablets, and X-ray and MRI machines. By tying all these solutions together and cooperating with other partners, it will enable patients to manage their health from their own devices.

5. IoT breaks free from homes and enters the city

In the next couple of years, one should expect to see IoT transform urban environments thanks to the combination of learnings from smart homes and buildings, and the proliferation of 5G. Transformation will happen in waves, starting with innovation that requires fewer regulations. It is expected to impact the daily life of the community in meaningful ways, such as parking solutions, mapping, and bike share schemes.

Samsung NEXT already has various IoT investments including Stae for data-driven urban planning, and Swiftly that provides enterprise software to help transit agencies and cities improve urban mobility.

The company has its own IoT platform SmartThings—an acquisition that came through the Samsung NEXT team. The platform is connected to ARTIK for enterprises and HARMAN Ignite’s connected car platform, creating a comprehensive IoT ecosystem. Based on its progress on IoT, Samsung showcased its vision for ‘Samsung City 2020’ at this year’s CES, which is on its way to realization.