Samsung’s officially said very little about its upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone, with most information about the handset coming through rumors and speculation. It’s now broken its silence to a certain extent by confirming that its next flagship will feature an AI-powered digital assistant.
To recall, Samsung had bought AI startup Viv Labs back in October this year. It now plans to integrate the assistant into its Galaxy lineup of phones, home appliances, and wearable lineup. The brand hasn’t specified what exactly the AI service could offer to Galaxy S8 users, though it did mention that the service would allow customers to use third-party features seamlessly.
As per Reuters, Samsung Executive Vice President Rhee Injong said that developers will be able to attach and upload services to its agent. He went on to explain that even if the company doesn’t do anything on its own, the assistant will get smarter as more and more services get added to the roster.
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The AI-powered tool will further learn new services in the process and supply them to end-users with ease. Samsung hopes a dash of AI will help differentiate its devices, ranging from handsets to fridges, from competition like Google’s Pixel smartphones. The move also marks a big breakaway from Android, allowing Samsung to establish its own service instead of relying on Google’s.
Viv will also have to compete with other digital assistants like Apple’s Siri, Microsoft’s Cortana, and Amazon’s Alexa. Samsung apparently has plans for more acquisitions in the future to boost its AI and other assorted software capabilities.
Samsung’s heavily relying on the Galaxy S8 to drive up momentum after its Galaxy Note 7 debacle wiped away $5.4 billion in profit. Other than AI, the smartphone is also expected to feature a borderless screen, better camera, and optical fingerprint recognition technology.