20 Whirlpool voice-activated smart appliances steal spotlight at CES

AI assistants like the ones in the Amazon Echo and Google home have mostly taken over the living room. The next space to conquer is the kitchen, and Whirlpool is more than happy to open the flood gates.

Twenty new models of smart appliances were recently unveiled at CES 2017. GE says that all these devices will have Wi-Fi connectivity and will be voice-activated as a standard, reports Digital Trends.

This lineup includes dishwashers, fridges, microwaves, ranges, and wall ovens, to name a few. Homeowners will soon be living the future where they can simply tell the stove to preheat or shut off before dinner gets overcooked.

Jason Mathew, senior director of global connected strategy at Whirlpool, describes the features of these smart appliances as ‘Scan-to-Cook.’ People will one day be able to simply take a picture or scan a bar code for the oven to heat up, say, frozen pizza, at just the right temperature.

Whirlpool’s broader version includes working with Innit, a company that is figuring out a way to digitize food.

Finally, as current AI assistants learn to adjust to specific user preferences, so too will these smart appliances in the future. For example, ovens will learn how chewy or crispy the users would like their cookies, and the ovens would adjust the cooking time accordingly.

There are big things in store for AI assistance in the household. Next thing we know, the fridge will be suggesting what to get from the grocery. Alfred Bayle

source: technology.inquirer.net

Samsung to buy US tech firm SmartThings

SEOUL – Samsung said Friday it had reached a deal to buy a US home automation startup SmartThings, as the South Korean electronics giant aims to expand beyond the increasingly saturated smartphone market.

The world's top smartphone maker said it had entered into a deal to buy the US app maker, which allows people to monitor and control their home appliances via mobile devices.

"With Samsung's resources and support, SmartThings will be able to expand its platform and become available for even more partners and devices," Samsung said in a statement.

It gave no details of the value of the deal.

SmartThings will continue to operate independently under its founder and CEO Alex Hawkinson and will become part of Samsung's Open Innovation Center, the statement said.

The center is responsible for developing Samsung's new software and services.

"We are committed to maintaining SmartThings' open platform, fostering more explosive growth, and becoming its newest strategic partner," the center's head, David Eun, said in the statement.

SmartThings, founded in 2012, has built an open platform that supports about 1,000 devices.

Samsung produces electronic products including handsets, memory chips, TVs and other home appliances like washing machines and refrigerators.

But the company earns more than a half of its sales and profits from its mobile business, which is faced with increasing competition in an increasingly saturated market.

Samsung last month reported a 20-percent drop in its net profit for the second quarter with analysts predicting a bleak future for its key mobile unit.

The firm has ramped up efforts to promote Internet-enabled wearable devices like smartwatches, in a move towards the market for the Internet of Things, in which household appliances and electronic devices are connected through the network. – Agence France-Presse

source: gmanetwork.com