At Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked 2025 event, its SmartThings division revealed new AI technology that could be configured to supercharge the smart home experience – provided you have a Samsung-based ecosystem, well on.
The new tools will fall under the banner of Samsung’s Home AI and include “ambient sensing,” a feature that collects information about connected devices around your home and adapts to your daily life to make your smart home more efficient.
We don’t have a confirmed release date yet, other than a wide 2025-2026 deployment window, which means you have plenty of time to equip your smart home with SmartThings-compatible hardware; just keep in mind that it’s likely that most features will be exclusive to Samsung devices, at least in the short term.
Here are the answers to all your burning questions…
What is ambient sensing?
Chief among these new developments is ambient sensing, where SmartThings devices will be able to leverage advanced sensor technology such as motion and sound detection to monitor your daily activities and create the perfect environment in every moment.
Many Samsung devices are equipped with such sensors, from the new Bespoke JetBot Combo AI robot vacuum to Samsung’s large appliances and the Samsung Music Frame, meaning you may already have a few devices in your home that will benefit from the new ambient sensor technology.
What will Samsung’s ambient sensing do?
Samsung provided some examples of what its ambient sensing technology will be capable of:
- Human detection and activity monitoring: SmartThings will be able to use sensors to detect different activities such as doing push-ups, sleeping or even working at your desk. This information will be used to recommend better routines and improve your environment.
- Health and lifestyle recommendations: It’s not just your devices that SmartThings will adjust; To help you stay healthy, SmartThings will provide real-time feedback, such as reminding you to move if you’ve been sitting for too long.
So what might this look like in practice? For example, while you’re working out, Samsung says SmartThings will be able to detect the type of exercise you’re doing, guide you on your form, and recommend ways to increase your gains by changing the duration of the workout. exercise.
If you’ve just jumped in the shower, the sound and movement made as you dry your hair could trigger your robot vacuum to collect any hair you lose in the process, or create a more ambient ambiance as you approach your favorite reading chair by changing position. turn on the nearby lamp and adjust the room temperature.
Or, if you have a particularly fluffy friend at home who emits wisps of fur when he jumps on the furniture, SmartThings might even recognize it and activate your air purifier to remove allergens from the air.
Indeed, this is a development that I discussed with a number of executives at CES 2025, although I wasn’t able to get a clear sense of how quickly these features might manifest; now I know, and I’m thrilled that it’s happening much sooner than expected.
AI generative map view
The fun doesn’t stop there; SmartThings is also ready to upgrade its AI Home arsenal with Generative AI technology, including adding additional customization to your map view.
Now, Samsung says you’ll be able to use your phone’s camera to capture images of furniture around your home to make the map view more accurate to suit your style.
This means you will have a better user experience when it comes to navigating and interacting with your smart home, as Map View will know where your furniture is and will be able to leverage new ambient sensing technology based on proximity.
Will SmartThings keep my home data secure?
The short answer is, says Samsung, yes.
The longer answer is that Samsung will store all information locally on your network, providing privacy by keeping data in Samsung devices and appliances instead of relying on the cloud. This means, Samsung claims, that your data will not be accessible to third parties without your consent.
Samsung is, frankly, light years ahead of its smart home competitors, due to its combination of widely varying product categories in home and lifestyle devices, its global popularity, and its diverse partnerships. with companies like Google for its AI tools as well as its collaboration with the Connectivity Standards Alliance on Matter.
