Today, Auto Open Door is available across a range of appliances, including refrigerators, ovens, washing machines, dryers and dishwashers.^[1] Washer-dryers and dishwashers open automatically at the end of a cycle for better hygiene and more convenience. The 2025 Bespoke AI Laundry Combo goes further, adding air circulation to reduce up to 40%^[2] of leftover moisture in the drum after washing.

Starting this year, users don’t even need to say “Hi Bixby” to activate Auto Open Door — a simple command like “Open the fridge door” is enough. Samsung Newsroom spoke with Nae-young Park from the Washing Machine Module Lab, Digital Appliances (DA) Business and Chang-Woo Han from the AI Solution Team, Samsung Research at Samsung Electronics to learn how the feature came to life.

▲ (From left) Nae-young Park and Chang-Woo Han

Q: What inspired the development of Auto Open Door?

Park: When putting groceries into the refrigerator or loading laundry into the washing machine, users often had to set down what they were carrying just to open the door. With washing machines, leaving laundry inside after a cycle could lead to lingering moisture and musty odours. We developed this feature to ease those inconveniences while also considering hygiene.

Q: What aspects did you focus on most during development?

Park: We considered several factors, including opening angle and speed, to make sure the door opened in a stable, natural way. Angles were tested in one-degree increments and the structure was fine-tuned to create an experience that didn’t feel too slow or too fast. For washing machines, we even measured oxygen concentration at different door angles to find the optimal setting for smooth air circulation — effectively reducing residual moisture in the drum.

Q: How was the voice-activated door–opening feature designed to work without calling Bixby?

Han: Because the system had to recognise commands without a wake-up phrase, it needed to remain in standby and respond quickly. That required balancing energy efficiency with responsiveness, using low-power, low-latency technology. To achieve this, we implemented low-power keyword detection and on-device automatic speech recognition (ASR) — detecting the user’s voice, identifying phrases like “Open the fridge door” and using on-device ASR to accurately interpret and execute the command.

Q: What efforts went into making the voice recognition technology stable and efficient?

Han: High-quality voice recognition depends on accurately understanding a variety of commands and requires large amounts of recorded voice data. Since collecting that data manually is time-consuming and resource-intensive, we developed ‘Zero-shot text-to-speech (TTS)^[3] technology to streamline the process. Zero-shot TTS can synthesize required sentences in many different voices and use them for training. We advanced the technology to the point where it can replace models trained on real human voices.

Q: What is the future development direction for Auto Open Door?

Park: Looking ahead, Auto Open Door will be expanded to more products. We want to equip a broader range of appliances with this technology so users can interact with any Samsung appliance naturally. Our goal is to create solutions that make life easier for everyone, regardless of their physical condition or circumstance.

Han: This year, we introduced new voice recognition capabilities such as Voice ID — which distinguishes between family members — and voice control that works without a wake-up phrase. Moving forward, we will keep improving core performance while developing more personalised services for users.

With Auto Open Door, Samsung has turned user-centred innovation into everyday convenience. Going forward, Samsung plans to continue making this feature available on more of its products. As the company continues to deliver differentiated technologies and new appliance experiences, consumers can look forward to even greater ease and comfort at home.

^[1] Products and models equipped with the feature may vary by market.

^[2] Up to 40% moisture reduction measured after 24 hours with Auto Open Door compared to closed-door conditions. Test conducted at 25℃ and 55% relative humidity with a 1 kg IEC laundry load (standard cycle, spin level 4) and door open at a 10˚angle.

^[3] Zero-shot TTS references approximately five seconds of speech provided by the user to synthesize new audio in a similar style.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa –  02 October 2020 – Samsung has announced that the company has received ‘Tried and Tested Accreditation’ for its 2020 Smart TVs from the United Kingdom’s Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) which is the first time this accreditation has been given in the TV industry. This recognition comes as South Africa celebrates Eye Care Awareness Month from 21 September to 18 October, to raise awareness about the importance of eye health.

RNIB awards its “Tried and Tested” accreditation to products, websites, apps, or services which meet RNIB criteria for accessibility for consumers with impaired vision. This distinction enables the users to make easier purchase decisions and underscores Samsung’s commitment to improving accessibility features on its TVs.

Samsung has worked with RNIB since 2013 to ensure that Samsung products are suited with the proper features to offer accessibility for all consumers. Since 2014, Samsung has focused on enhancing accessibility features for users who are visually impaired, providing features such as ‘Voice Guide’ that enables the TV to read aloud program information and ‘High Contrast’ mode that displays graphic information with opaque black backgrounds and white font for enhanced visibility. In recognition of these features, RNIB presented its ‘Inclusive Society Award’ to Samsung Electronics in 2016.

Since then, Samsung has continued to improve and expand the accessibility features on its TVs to better achieve digital inclusivity for deaf and hearing-impaired people as well as blind and partially sighted people. Features include:

• With the upgraded Voice Guide feature, users can listen to key information on programs as well as for instructions for the remote control and accessibility features. Users also can adjust the pitch and speed of the Voice Guide to suit their preferences.

• The Digital Magnifier which enhances and expands text and images on large screens while mirroring the Samsung Galaxy smartphone to a TV.¹

• The Focus Enlarge feature magnifies specific fonts related to TV control, volume, and menus.

• Automatic recognition and enlargement of the sign language area for the hearing-impaired as well as the ability to adjust and move the subtitle positions.

“With the evolving needs of consumers Samsung is focused on technology that empowers more people in new ways,” said Mncane Mthunzi, Director of Consumer Electronics at Samsung South Africa “Samsung is fully committed to providing comprehensive accessibility features on its TVs so that every user can enjoy their favourite content much more easily,” he added.

David Clarke, Director of Services at RNIB, said, “RNIB is delighted to award our Tried and Tested certification to Samsung in recognition of the accessibility features within their TV. RNIB and Samsung have worked together since 2013, and each year the accessibility features on their televisions have been improved and expanded.”

1 Digital Magnifier may not be available on some Samsung mobile devices.

2 The images shown are for illustration purposes only, and may differ from the actual product. Product specifications may vary by country, region, model, and carrier.

Samsung Audio Acordes, using a voice system, helps visually impaired people learn to play the guitar

Using  a voice system, Samsung Audio Acordes acts as a facilitator for blind or visually impaired people to learn to play the guitar. The app offers beginners an audio dictionary that teaches them how to play chords and can also tell users when to play which chord as a song progresses. It is especially helpful because  the app eliminates some of the barriers such as the need to know how to read braille, which is only understood by 10% of visually impaired people in Brazil, or having to stop playing every now and then to read the music with the same hands they play the instrument.

“Samsung believes in the human potential and in the transformative power of music and technology which has resulted in Samsung Audio Chords,” said Andrea Mello, Director of Corporate Marketing, Samsung Electronics Brazil. “The application is part of the company’s effort to offer people with visual impairments the opportunity to pursue their dreams of learning to play the guitar. It was designed in such a way as to offer total support and accessibility, even for those who are only learning their first chords.”

Samsung Audio Acordes is currently only available in Brazil for now.