With over 25 years of experience in the medical field and now as Head of Digital Health team at Samsung Electronics, I spend a lot of time contemplating how technology can truly drive progress in healthcare, rather than being just another innovation for innovation’s sake. That’s why I’m very excited about AI as it offers new ways to address many of society’s health problems by simplifying complexity and at scale.

In our ongoing work to reimagine healthcare, Samsung is leveraging advanced AI algorithms and extensive technical expertise to develop solutions like Energy Score. This feature quantifies physical and mental energy levels through multiple health indicators including sleep, heart health and physical activity. Our vision is to include more comprehensive metrics like nutrition, mental health, and additional mobile usage patterns to provide a holistic view of users’ health status, powered by AI.

AI holds great promise for early disease prevention through analysing patterns and behaviours, detecting abnormalities, and even predicting potential health issues. By combining our long-standing sensor innovations with AI leadership, we aim to elevate our capabilities in preventing diseases, beyond sleep apnea and expanding to cardio-metabolic conditions. In particular, blood glucose is a big area of focus for us, and Samsung has been working to develop a sensor algorithm that predicts early signs of diabetes – along with non-invasive blood glucose monitoring technology and continuous glucose monitoring-integrated nutrition coaching.

Our goal is to support proactive health management, lowering healthcare burdens on individuals, families and communities at large. I strongly believe that AI will revolutionise the digital health industry and simplify the wellness journey for everyone. As a global tech leader, Samsung is uniquely equipped to make this a reality with our mix of technology innovations and a growing ecosystem of partners.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – 07 January 2021 – 2020 was a year like no other, one that quickly and unexpectedly shook up our lives and reimagined our normal. We gained perspective on the things that really matter, like our health and our loved ones, and the experiences we truly value.

And to adapt to our new way of living, we embraced technology at warp speed – using it to connect with others and find new joy in our everyday, right from the comfort of our homes. We used it to continue moving forward – in education, work, and even celebrating major life moments virtually at a time when it felt like everything else stood still.

Last year, Samsung kicked off the new decade at CES and shared our vision to enable experiences that make new technologies increasingly meaningful in our lives. We talked about a world where our living spaces would become workout studios and meeting spaces, and kitchens would become hyper-personalised to your unique needs. Little did we know then that those experiences would become so important, so quickly.

So, while we may not be meeting in-person in Las Vegas this year, this may be the most exciting CES yet as we embark on the next stage of this journey where we focus on experiences that improve your life and the world we live in. Together, we can create a Better Normal for All.

This Better Normal for All is centered around the idea that with the right technology, we’re ready for a better, brighter future. I cannot wait to welcome you to Samsung’s CES press conference to unveil what the Better Normal will look like, beginning with technology personalised for you, AI to improve your home life, and expanding through innovation that makes a real difference to our society and our world. Here is a sneak peek at what I will be announcing:

A Better, More Personalised Experience

Our vision for a Better Normal for All begins and ends with you. We’ve all spent more time at home, expecting more out of our living spaces and for many, this has been increasingly challenging. That’s why we’re introducing smarter technologies that enrich your life through seamless personalised experiences, from helping you master your yoga technique and achieve your home fitness goals, to navigating a new diet with tailored recipes and intuitive connected kitchen appliances.

AI Empowering a Better Home

Ultimately, the Better Normal will not look the same for you or me – it will revolve around everyone’s unique needs and habits. We must create technologies that adapt to our ways of life and add value to everything we do, that make new experiences more accessible and exciting. Just imagine how much easier it would be if you had a trusted partner around the house, an extension of yourself that could help set the table or put groceries away, recognising and handling objects with care and precision. Well imagine no more, because at CES, we’re going to show you how our cutting-edge research is working to bring an extra pair of hands to your home. We’re advancing our AI-infused technologies to enable you to do more than ever, and we cannot wait to show you how robotics will support us on the journey to a Better Normal.

Technology Shaping a Brighter Future

And throughout this journey, we must acknowledge our responsibility to serve not just our users, but our planet, and our society. While technology can reshape the way people communicate and experience the world today, it is also the enabler of a brighter future. As we overcome one of the biggest challenges of our lifetime, we must stand together to ensure that our Better Normal also benefits the generations to come.

At CES, Samsung will share more about its sustainability vision. As a global leader in technology, breaking down barriers to a better future will continue to be pivotal to our mission as we put people, society and the planet at the center of everything we do.

We are at the beginning of a very unique opportunity to not just overcome the past year’s adversity, but to create a Better Normal for All, and I’m so excited to share more about how Samsung is making this a reality. I hope you’ll join me for the Samsung virtual CES press conference on Monday, January 11th.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – 28 July 2020 – TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung discussed steering the mobile Industry through the next Normal:

“Since I took over the reins at Samsung Mobile six months ago, so much has changed. What was once ordinary now feels extraordinary – whether you’re visiting a friend or going out for a meal. I consider this new era as the “Next Normal” and technology – especially mobile technology – has a critical role in it. In just a few months, we’ve seen our lives change in unimaginable ways. Distance learning, at-home fitness, online concerts, and so much more have all been enabled by mobile technology.

As leaders of the tech industry, we have a special responsibility – and now a true sense of urgency – to help society continue to move forward. So many people are counting on us to give them new ways to communicate, new ways to work, and new ways to connect.

At this summer’s Galaxy Unpacked, we’ll be introducing five new power devices. These devices deliver on our vision to be the innovator of new mobile experiences that flow seamlessly and continuously wherever we go. They combine power with seamless functionality, whether you’re at work or play, at home or away. In the Next Normal, you will be empowered to live life to the fullest with these devices in your hand (and in your ears, and on your wrist.)

As I chart Samsung Mobile’s future, I’d like to share three strategic priorities I’ve been focusing on. They’re bold and forward-leaning, but that’s what Samsung has always been about. Instead of playing it safe, we take risks and move fast. Instead of waiting for others, we set the direction for the rest of the industry. Even in these difficult times, I know that these pillars will keep our focus squarely where it needs to be: on our customers.

Meaningful Innovations

At Samsung, we create every innovation with a clear purpose: to make your life better and easier. At a time when the pandemic has imposed so many boundaries on all of us, technology is a bridge to a bigger world. Mobile devices have become the only way for many people to work from home and stay connected – they’ve become a true lifeline.

In the last six months, we’ve super-charged our product line and invested heavily in R&D. We’ve deployed new solutions in record time, to do everything from improving video-chat technology to helping frontline workers stay safe on the job.

This Next Normal will be a period of even bolder innovation. We’ll make mobile technology that’s more personal, intelligent, useful, and secure. We’ll develop more ground-breaking products, like our industry-leading foldable phones. And as we roll out a wide range of Galaxy 5G devices in more markets, this technology will enable so many experiences we can’t even imagine yet.

From foldables to 5G, we have a tremendous amount in the pipeline, with some ready to be shown just around the corner. But I’m also excited about how people will use these technologies to change their lives. Because only then, will meaningful innovation be realised.

Open Collaboration

“The power of the group is stronger than going it alone”. The last few months have proved the truth of that saying many times over. The stories of so many people coming together to help each other are incredibly uplifting, and demonstrate that the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts. It’s given me a newfound appreciation of the power of Samsung’s vast partner network. We’ve always believed that we should work together, to create new experiences for our customers.

Think about our collaboration with Google, Microsoft, Netflix and Spotify, to name a few. We worked with Google to optimise video-calling¹ so users could more easily connect. We also expanded our partnership with Microsoft so Galaxy smartphones and Windows PCs can share messages, photos, and calendar reminders in real-time² . This collaboration will only continue to expand through our gaming partnership with Xbox.

We also believe in the power of partnerships because we want everyone – including start-ups, developers, and our local communities – to have a chance to achieve their dreams. The Samsung C-Lab start-up incubation program and Samsung NEXT are just a few ways we help entrepreneurs inside and outside of our company build, grow, and scale. At Samsung, we’ll continue to bring the best ideas to market – no matter where they come from. After all, we are truly stronger together.

Operational Agility

In our fast-changing world, agility is crucial. The breakneck pace of change dictated by our new reality has driven home the need for operational agility: the ability to prioritise resources and be efficient today, while anticipating trends and acting decisively for tomorrow. The pandemic posed a stiff test. It meant transforming quickly to take care of our local communities, partners and employees, while still building resilience for future operations.

This agility is also what has enabled us to bring to life the powerful devices, and their connected experiences, which we will be introducing at Galaxy Unpacked. We saw that people wanted – and needed – devices optimised for work, play, and multi-tasking for a diverse range of lifestyles. Our commitment to innovation, coupled with our operational agility, meant we could completely reimagine the mobile experience. Operational agility has also led to fundamental changes in how we deliver a mobile experience you can trust. Because protecting customers is our number one priority, we incorporate security across every single layer of your device, from the chip all the way up to the apps. Today we are proud that our industry-leading, defense-grade Knox security platform protects more than a billion customers around the world.

The Future of Mobile Innovation

In summary, these three strategic priorities will guide Samsung Mobile through the Next Normal and beyond. They’ll allow us to constantly reinvent ourselves to realise our vision of delivering new and innovative mobile experiences to more and more people across the globe. We’ll continue to expand the Galaxy ecosystem and deliver experiences that help you do more with less so that you can focus on what really matters. Ultimately, it’s about putting you at the center of the Galaxy experience so you can live life to the absolute fullest.

You will be able to see for yourself what we have in store for you next at Galaxy Unpacked on August 5th. For the first time, we will be broadcasting live from South Korea – it’s going to be an exciting virtual experience. We look forward to sharing it with you”

¹ Through Google Duo on Galaxy devices. Availability may vary by market, carrier and model.

² Through the Link to Windows and Your Phone app. Availability may vary by market, carrier and model.

Over my career at Samsung, I’ve had the pleasure of leading the development of mobile devices with breakthroughs that have come to define the last decade of smartphone innovation, starting with the very first Galaxy S and more recently, the Galaxy Fold. Today, I’m excited to say that we believe we are at the dawn of an inspiring new decade filled with the promise of growth and change. The growth and change for the smartphone industry, and ecosystem as a whole. As a leading player within the mobile industry, we relish our responsibility to lead next decade, empowered by experience innovation, cutting-edge technologies, and most of all, compelling products.

Fifty years ago, Samsung Electronics was founded with a clear purpose: to use the power of technology to create a better world. Driven by our commitment to break down barriers and make what some thought impossible, possible.

In 2011, we recognised that consumers were doing even more on their devices. We responded and introduced a more powerful phone with a larger screen and an S Pen to give consumers ultimate productivity on the go—the Galaxy Note. With every new device, we continued to innovate and pioneer new display, camera, and performance technologies. Last year, we created a new category with a foldable device, the Galaxy Fold.

Now, here at the start of 2020, we are excited about the opportunity to define a new era. An era that is defined not simply for innovation’s sake but to truly enable experiences that are more personal, meaningful, private and secure; that will create more intelligent connections across devices, people, businesses, and communities. This will be enabled by key advancements in the three most important technologies of our time: 5G, AI and the Internet of Things (IoT). As the leading innovator of new mobile experiences, Samsung is proud to drive the convergence of these technologies across various smart devices, including Galaxy phones, wearables and PCs.

We’ve already started bringing these new experiences to life. Through open collaboration with industry leaders, such as Google and Microsoft, we are building the robust connected ecosystem in the world. And we are working with major carriers to expand 5G services, so hundreds of millions more consumers around the world can have access to next generation networks.

It’s our responsibility and opportunity to shape the next ten years of mobile innovation, starting right now at Unpacked. No company is better suited to take on this massive challenge than Samsung.

What an exciting time for Samsung, our industry and consumers.

There were some exciting examples of how we’re driving progress, changing the shape of the future and introducing new mobile experiences at Unpacked. I’m excited to flip the industry on its head.

Africa, 15 January 2019 – In light of modest global sales recently, some observers say that smartphone innovation has hit a bottleneck, as new devices bear more iterative upgrades instead of groundbreaking features. Others even predict that the smartphone era may be coming to an end soon.

But with mobile technologies like 5G, AI, and AR maturing rapidly, users will be able to do even more with their smartphones soon. Instead of losing relevance, the next wave of technological innovation will make the smartphone more central to our lives than ever before. Whether it’s leveraging increased connectivity or harnessing next-generation mobile intelligence, a larger display will be key to accessing future smartphone experiences.

Despite current trends, we are still living in a world where the size of the smartphone display can only be as large as the device itself. At Samsung, we began to ask ourselves how we can overcome this limitation and expand the possibilities of what users can accomplish on the go.

The Shape of Things to Come

Smartphone displays can’t get any larger without compromising portability – this was the orthodoxy for a long time.

Instead of accepting the status quo, resolving the contradiction between screen size and portability and developing a new form factor became the central focus of our innovation efforts.

The recent unveiling of the Infinity Flex Display at SDC 2018 signaled the start of this new chapter. But building a foldable device was no mean feat. After the prototypes of the flexible display debuted at CES in 2011, it took another seven years to perfect the technology and deliver a truly meaningful experience to users. From developing new materials to overcoming mechanical challenges, the foldable screen demanded a total reconfiguration of the smartphone from inside out.

Preparing for the New Era

We expect to see a sea change in the smartphone form factor in the coming years. From rollable and stretchable devices to the devices that can fold in multiple ways are no longer beyond the realms of reality. Samsung is ready to usher in this future and create meaningful experiences for consumers that help them do more of what they love.

To build the new foldable device, we made significant investments to create a new material that completely changes the anatomy of the smartphone display. We also created a natural and durable folding experience that users can appreciate from the very first time they unfold the device and crafted an innovative mechanical technology that can withstand hundreds of thousands of folds. We also had to rethink the placements of the battery, cooling system, and camera so that they can be placed inside the slim body efficiently. Last but not least, we developed an intuitive UX to ensure apps can transition seamlessly between the smaller and larger displays. We are committed to continue pushing the limits of possibility and lead the mobile industry into a new era.

Smartphone innovation is at the cusp of the next major transformation. The arrival of the Infinity Flex Display is just the beginning. We will continue pushing the limits of possibility and shape the future as it unfolds.

The Language Understanding Lab led by Dr. Kim recently grabbed global attention after placing top ranks at global machine reading comprehension competitions held by Microsoft and the University of Washington, respectively. Samsung Newsroom visited the Samsung Research AI center in Seocho-gu, Korea to interview Dr. Kim about AI performance in the machine reading comprehension competitions and a future evolution plan for AI algorithms.

Jihie Kim, Head of the Language Understanding Lab at Samsung Research

Q. Please tell us about the MS MARCO and TriviaQA competitions held by Microsoft and the University of Washington, respectively, where your team ranked first place.

Kim: There have been many global machine reading competitions recently where AI presents solutions to a problem. MS MARCO and TriviaQA are among the top five global competitions in machine reading comprehension. AI algorithms are tested on whether they can understand and analyze questions to offer answers. Those tests are designed by referring to internet users’ queries and search results.

Q. What do you think was the critical factor in excelling at the AI competitions which require such high levels of technical expertise?

Kim: The ConZNet algorithm developed by the Language Understanding Lab at Samsung Reseach is upgrading its intelligence by considering real user environments. The algorithm takes natural language into account such as how people deliver queries and answers online. We were able to win those competitions because the MS MARCO and TriviaQA competitions are about AI capabilities in real user environments. In truth, our algorithm was a bit behind other competitors in tests requiring a simple answer to a question after analyzing a short paragraph. But because such technologies have low relevance to real environments using AI technologies, we are focusing on the other tests such as MS MARCO in proceeding with continuous R&D.

Q. Do you apply the winning algorithms to customer services in real life?

Kim: An Open Lab event was held recently to introduce the labs at Samsung Research to other departments in Samsung Electronics. At the event, we had in-depth discussions with engineers in our home appliances and smartphone departments about AI algorithms. Departments dealing with customer services also showed high interest in what we do because AI-based customer services including chatbots are emerging as a hot topic. We hope that our technologies developed at Samsung Research will be naturally adopted to Samsung Electronics products and services.

Dr. Kim and the developers of the Language Understanding Lab at Samsung Research are participating in an ideation meeting.

Q. What is your future evolution plan for advancing AI technologies in language understanding?

Kim: ConZNet is an acronym for “Context Zoom-in Network.” The name implies that understanding the context of what people say is critical. We need to advance AI technologies to help them understand and analyze short sentences. AI algorithms also need to have capabilities to analyze real-time news reports rather than existing data to give answers to customer queries. We are also developing technologies where an AI algorithm can answer, “there are no proper answers to your query,” as well as search for right answers. The so-called “rejection problem” is an AI technology with a high level of technical difficulties.

Q. Please tell us your ultimate goal in developing AI technologies.

Kim: The strengths of Samsung in the AI industry are that we can build a knowledge system about connections between machines and applications, and customer demands in the internet of things (IoT) environment comprised of personal devices, based on Samsung Electronics’ diverse product lineup. This will help us to achieve the goal of realizing a user-oriented AI system by collaborating with global partners in the industry. Samsung Electronics recently began to launch global AI Centers and we will lead the effort of working with AI experts at the new centers abroad.

And now DxOMark—the trusted industry standard for camera and lens image quality measurements and ratings—has just announced that the Galaxy S9+ has earned the top spot in their mobile camera rankings. With a score of 99 points, we’ve earned DxOMark’s highest-ever combined photo and video rating for a smartphone camera. The Galaxy S9+ photo score from DxOMark is 104 points – the highest ever photo score from the organization.

Among all the exciting innovations, two technical innovations did more than any others to push the Galaxy S9+ to the top of the DxOMark rankings:  the Dual Aperture¹ and the Super Speed Dual Pixel Sensor. They work together to help you take amazing photos in any lighting condition and capture everyday epic moments.

If you’ve ever taken a grainy photo at a dimly lit birthday dinner or frowned as your friend’s smile got washed out by bright sunlight, then you know that most of the time we take photos in imperfect light. The Dual Aperture lens automatically adapts like the human eye, and with an F stop of 1.5 it’s the widest lens of any smartphone—delivering the brightest possible pictures in extreme low-light environments. Meanwhile, the Super Speed Dual Pixel sensor goes to work, using its dedicated processing power and memory to combine up to 12 distinct images into one amazing, high-quality photo.

DxOMark’s ranking affirmed the value of these camera innovations with every photo we take—from midnight to high noon. But they’re not the only reasons you’ll want to experience for yourself what the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ camera does to reimagine the way you communicate, share and experience the world.

In Super Slow-mo mode, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ lets you capture 960 frames per second—four times more than the Galaxy S8. While manual capture gives you complete control of the shot, the new Automatic Motion Detection mode will start recording as soon as it senses movement in the frame,. After capturing the shot, music is added automatically and instantly creates three shareable GIFs  to easily share with friends and family.

There are even more ways to personalize what you create and share with the new camera with augmented reality (AR) technology. Using advanced AR technology, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ analyze a 2D image of you and creates a 3D animated AR Emoji, a personalized emoji that’s uniquely you.

AR Emoji messages are saved in a standard AGIF file format, so you can send them to anyone using your favorite messaging app. To create one, it’s as easy as taking a selfie.

The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ AR technology also reimagines the way you interact with the world around you. Bixby, Samsung’s intelligence platform, is integrated into the camera and automatically overlays information directly on top of the image the camera is pointing at. With new Bixby features² built right within the camera, you don’t have to go through several steps or applications to get information about local landmarks, read a foreign menu or street sign in 54 different languages with Live Translation³, or shop⁴. If you see a cool product, Bixby will show you shopping options from retailers such as Walmart and Sam’s Club. The new Makeup feature lets you try on different looks and shop for your favorites. You can even point the camera at the meal in front of you, and in conjunction with AI, Bixby can estimate the calories and track them in Samsung Health.

As I hope you can see, we did more than design a new smartphone camera. We reimagined it so you can capture the perfect image in almost any light, capture moments and tell stories in new, creative ways.

¹ Rear camera F1.5 lens. Dual aperture (F2.4/F1.5) on rear wide-angle lens only. Light comparison based on the Galaxy S8.
² Voice command works with a select, growing number of third-party apps; see Apps with Voice in Bixby for a list of compatible apps. Service ability may vary by country. Instant access to Bixby not available while in: video and voice recording, call, Ultra Power Saving Mode, Emergency Mode, Kids Mode, DeX, DeX Station, and Car Mode.

³ Samsung Account log-in and data network (wifi or internet connection) required. Translation speed may vary depending on internet connection and word count. This function is limited to selected languages. For the full list of languages please visit www.samsung.com/galaxy

⁴ Feature limited to select retail partners.

For example, in the home, when a user wakes up in the morning on a rainy day, the home lights will gradually brighten, while music fit for a rainy day is selected and played in the background. A cup of coffee will be prepared as soon as the user says “coffee” while stepping into the kitchen and the refrigerator will also recommend meal ideas for the day, asking the user whether he or she would like to buy ingredients online.

In the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry, Samsung Electronics is uniquely positioned to bring this world of connected AI services to life, based on the almost half a billion connected devices the company sells every year. In fact, given the typical lifecycle of a device, there are more than a billion Samsung devices actively used around the world at any given time.

Samsung’s device portfolio also is the industry’s broadest, and includes mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets and wearable devices, office devices such as PCs, signages and Samsung Flip, devices for the home such as Samsung Smart TVs, Family Hub and FlexWash and FlexDry, and much more.

At this year’s CES, Samsung highlighted its latest innovations in its vision to drive the Internet of Things (IoT) supported by AI. Samsung Smart TVs now integrated with Bixby, are able to play music and shows personalized for users, as well as show who is at the front door or what is inside the refrigerator. The Family Hub refrigerator, also integrated with AI, recognizes the voices of different family members and provides each of them with a personalized daily schedule.

Moving forward, Samsung will continue to remain focused on holistically integrating AI into a connected setting, such as the home or the office, in contrast to other players primarily pursuing implementation of AI on a few devices and services. In the following months, Samsung will integrate not only Samsung devices, but also IoT devices and sensors developed by external partners into the SmartThings eco-system, allowing a single SmartThings app to control everything. Furthermore, Samsung also plans to integrate AI into all its connected devices by 2020.

In the coming years, many IoT devices with AI support will generate a vast array of usage patterns and scenarios. How AI-enabled devices learn and analyze complex usage patterns and provide consumers with the most optimized options will be critical to the success of AI technology for the near future. In other words, the success of AI will boil down to how well the devices understand the users.

Therefore, Samsung’s perspective on AI is to build an eco-system that is user-centric rather than device-centric. To pursue that goal, we will start by building an AI platform under a common architecture that will not only scale quickly, but also provide the deepest understanding of usage context and behaviors, making AI more relevant and useful.

For the past decades, Samsung successfully introduced products and innovations by researching the lifestyle and behavior of global consumers. Paying respect to our heritage of user-centric product development, Samsung will begin an exciting journey open to boundless possibilities in new user experiences by integrating AI into the open IoT ecosystem it is currently developing. This journey will certainly be fascinating for us here at Samsung, but even more so for consumers, as Samsung takes major steps forward to bring consumers’ hopes and expectations to life.

Today at the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC) 2017 in San Francisco, I was honored to share Samsung’s vision for intelligence, with the introduction of Bixby 2.0 – a powerful intelligent assistant platform that will bring a connected experience that is ubiquitous, personal, and open.  Bixby 2.0 will be a fundamental leap forward for digital assistants and represents another important milestone to transform our digital lives.

Today’s assistants are useful, but ultimately still play a limited role in people’s lives. People use them to set timers and reminders, answer trivial questions, etc. We see a world where digital assistant play a bigger role, an intelligent role, where one day everything from our phones, to our fridge, to our sprinkler system will have some sort of intelligence to help us seamlessly interact with all the technology we use each day.

To understand where we are going with devices, it is important to understand how far we’ve come. It is hard to believe, when you think back to just a decade ago, how we used our phones. It was likely a feature phone, which was primarily used to make calls and use a limited number of apps. But I knew, we at Samsung knew, that there were greater possibilities for the mobile phone. During the early and mid-2000, I led the team at Samsung in creating the Mobile Intelligent Terminal by Samsung (MITs), which was an early generation of smartphones before the Galaxy S and Note series were finally born. Powered by open API, application eco-system and innovative touch UI, smartphone market has, ever since then, exploded and became a life-essential tool for everyone. It also brought new opportunities for businesses and developers.

I believe that we are now on the cusp of the next major tectonic shift. With our long legacy as the global smartphone leader, we’ve been bringing meaningful innovation and driving digital transformation for the industry, and we are excited to help lead the change during another revolutionary moment. Personally, I am excited to be part of this next great era and this shift is one of the reasons why we are motivated to continue to develop our intelligent assistant, Bixby.

We introduced Bixby to the world earlier this year with the launch of our flagship mobile devices, the Galaxy S8 and S8+ and the Note 8. Bixby is now available in over 200 different countries, with more than 10 million registered users. But this is just a start. When we launched Bixby, we focused on how it could help people with getting the most out of their smartphones and apps to make their life easier. We integrated a few close partner applications on the device to make those devices more intelligent. We created multi-step, and cross-app capabilities that have allowed more than millions of Bixby users get things done faster and easier, but it is just a stepping stone for us.

Now, we are ready to take Bixby to the next level. Bixby 2.0 is a bold reinvention of the platform. A reinvention aimed at transforming basic digital assistants from a novelty to an intelligence tool that is a key part of everyone’s daily life.

Bixby 2.0 will be ubiquitous, available on any and all devices. This means having the intelligence of Bixby, powered by the cloud, act as the control hub of your device ecosystem, including mobile phones, TVs, refrigerators, home speakers, or any other connected technology you can imagine. Soon, developers will be able to put their services on any and all devices and will not have to reinvent their services each time they support a new device.

It will be more personal, with enhanced natural language capabilities for more natural commands and complex processing, so it can really get to know and understand not only who you are, but who members of your family are, and tailor its response and actions appropriately.

And finally, and most importantly, Bixby 2.0 will be open. We know Samsung cannot deliver on this paradigm shift by ourselves – it can only happen if we all, across all industries, work together, in partnership. With Bixby 2.0, the doors will be wide open for developers to choose and model how users interact with Bixby in their services across all application domains e.g., sports, food, entertainment, or travel – the opportunities are truly endless.

Starting today, we’re announcing our first private beta program with Bixby SDK, which will be available for select developers. We will work as one team, innovating, collaborating, and bringing Bixby 2.0 to life. Over time, we will increase the number of participants in the beta, and ultimately make the Bixby SDK available to all developers.

Bixby 2.0 will ultimately be a marketplace, for intelligence. A new channel for developers to reach users with their service, not just on mobile devices, but through all devices. Over time, we will rollout variety of revenue models to maximize our partners’ business opportunities in this new paradigm. Hopefully making it as fruitful as the move from feature to smartphones was for our partners.

The future is yours. Whatever your technology platform, device category or industry sector: we call on all developers to unleash their creativity and help us to democratize intelligence, so that we can move beyond devices and into an open, connected ecosystem to simplify the lives of everyone.

In April 2017, the market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) made a prediction that the cognitive and artificial intelligence (AI) system market will continue its high growth of a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 54.5 percent by 2020. The characteristics of AI systems such as prediction, recommendation and intelligent assistance are expected to take important roles in creating intelligent services.

These functions of AI are already influencing consumer electronics, especially smartphones and TV products. The convergence of AI and TV is subtle, but it is a trend that is taking place and will continue to develop. Let’s look at the convergence of TV and AI and how it will change the future TV viewing, particularly for Samsung QLED TVs.

For Overwhelming Content, AI Is Necessary

People no longer just view channels provided by TV broadcasters. There are terrestrial networks, cable TV, satellite channels, internet protocol TV (IPTV) and even over the top (OTT) programming, as well as smart TV applications that viewers can choose to watch. Yet no one wants to check all the available options to find a show they might enjoy.

An AI recommendation feature could sort the content for you. AI embedded into the TV could analyze the viewer’s preference and show content that viewers might be interested on the TV screen. The 2017 Samsung QLED TV shows a large choice of content en bloc per service provider on a launcher section that is located on the lower side of the screen. Your favorite channels or services are showed first on the launcher by default and you can also use a voice commend to choose a show to watch.

In the near future, features like prediction and intelligent assistance that the IDC mentioned will be implemented in TVs and change the viewer’s experience. For example, AI can analyze weather conditions, time and issue of the day to offer the best content suited to those variables. Also, intelligent voice recognition in the future will allow conversation with viewers to recommend content depending on age, mood and content preference. These features will enhance TV viewing for everyone.

TV+AI, the Preview of IoT TV

As AI starts to be embedded into TV, viewers can use their TVs in a more convenient way. The 2017 Samsung QLED TV automatically recognizes set-top boxes, game consoles and other peripheral electronics. Instead of using technical terms such as HDMI to show the viewer which device is connected, it uses the product name like Xbox One and its logo. With this intelligent assistance, viewers no longer need complicated settings to use their TVs.

Let’s delve a little further into the examples of more advanced AI TVs. The Intelligent image engine of the Samsung QLED TV analyzes video sources automatically to change the brightness in real-time according to the light intensity. Also, the engine provides an immersive experience to viewers by enhancing perspective and three-dimensional perception.

Samsung’s The Frame which looks like a picture frame for an art, has an intelligent sensor that never existed on other televisions. The motion sensor of this product turns off the screen when there is no one around and it turns on the screen when someone comes near the TV. Furthermore, the brightness sensor automatically sets the brightness for the screen, which smoothly matches to surrounding ambient light sources.

TVs with the intelligent sensors are the previews of the future internet of things (IoT) -enabled TV. The IoT TV will optimize brightness, sound system and other features according to content characteristics such as movies and sports. In the morning, your TV could recognize your motion to control lights, blinds, air conditioner and other electronics.

Samsung plans to add IoT compatibility to all its TV products by the end of this year. In 2020, all Samsung products will become IoT-ready. Samsung’s anticipative investment towards AI and IoT will drastically change home entertainment and provide a whole new TV experience to viewers.