Samsung looking to announce a new Bixby powered smart speaker early next year. The company is said to be preparing to directly challenge the current players like Google and Amazon; although it may have a more interesting value proposition for consumers.
The report from Bloomberg expects that Samsung’s effort at a smart speaker will continue the trend of turning it into a control hub for the home environment. Linking Samsung’s eco-system of appliances and home electronics; almost all of which already feature some level of IoT integration.
Naturally, Samsung’s own AI assistant will be sitting at the heart of the product.
Smart speakers are expected to be the next big push for technology companies seeking to gain a foothold in the in consumer homes. Amazon has the advantage in this case by being the first to market; although it’s limited availability outside of the US has prevented the company from truly establishing dominance. The Google Home is suffering from similar limited global coverage.
Launching next year will likely put Samsung’s smart speaker in direct competition with Apple’s entry into the market. The Apple HomePod was announced earlier this year, but has been delayed until 2018. Whether it the launch date will affect Samsung’s plans is unknown; but then again, the company is no stranger in going head-to-head with Apple.
[Source: Bloomberg]
