Last Sunday, Samsung Electronics announced that they are planning to include an artificial intelligence (AI) assistant in its upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphones. Aside from the Galaxy smartphone, the digital virtual assistance will also be incorporated into their other products, including home appliances and wearable technology devices, according to media reports.
In early October, Samsung acquired Viv Labs. It is a startup formed by the creators of Siri, which impressed audiences with its digital assistant called Viv. Now, the company has confirmed that it will be including the service in its upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone.
"Our Galaxy smartphones don't provide services that enable consumers to order pizza or coffee but does provide third party applications. But the new AI platform will enable consumers to do things that they would usually do through a separate third-party application," Samsung reportedly said in a statement.
The Korean electronic company didn’t define what would be the exact features of the service when the phone is released sometime early next year, but it did indicate that it would integrate the Viv Labs services.
"Even if Samsung doesn't do anything on its own, the more services that get attached the smarter this agent will get, learn more new services and provide them to end-users with ease," according to Samsung Executive Vice President Rhee Injong.
According to Engadget, as for other features, or the release date, Samsung isn't talking. However, a recent report claims that Samsung delayed development of the Galaxy S8 by weeks to help identify the Galaxy Note 7's battery fire problem, potentially pushing back the unveiling beyond the usual February or March window.
The Samsung's plan to integrate an AI assistant into their different product lines would give Samsung a significant edge over its competitors. After the massive recall of the company’s Galaxy Note 7, earlier this year, Samsung will be relying heavily on the Galaxy S8 to help win over consumers.
