Samsung Electronics acquires AI startup Viv Labs

Samsung Electronics acquires AI startup Viv Labs. October. 07, 2016 07:34. by 박성진 기자psjin@donga.com.

Samsung Electronics has acquired VIV Labs, an artificial intelligence (AI) startup, which is the first time for Samsung to acquire an AI company.

The two companies said on Thursday that they agreed on the M&A deal and will sign an agreement within this month, while they agreed not to disclose the acquisition price. The acquisition would allow Samsung to lay the groundwork for the creation of an AI-based open ecosystem integrating all electronic devices with services.

VIV is a startup set up in 2012 by the engineers who left Apple after developing Siri. VIV’s AI platform is different from Siri, a closed one, in that external service providers can freely access the AI interface. While AI could perform only one function per command, Viv can run schedule, weather and taxi apps with a command like “Call me a taxi as it is going to be rainy at 6 p.m. today.” Viv will closely work with Samsung’s Mobile Communications business division, with the current management team running the startup independently.

Samsung will use Viv’s AI platform for Phone+ strategy – extending the platform by connecting various electronic devices with smartphones based on AI. It is said that the company plans to showcase a smartphone with Viv in the second half of next year at the earliest.

It is likely that the new platform is applied to a new product following Galaxy Note7, its strategic smartphone launched in the second half of the year. Over the mid to long term, it could apply the Viv technology not only to smartphones but also to other home appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, and air conditioners.

“Viv has a core technology for providing AI-based integrated services such as machine-learning capabilities, which are necessary for the creation of an open service ecosystem,” said Rhee In-jong, executive vice president of Samsung’s Mobile Communications business division. “We decided to acquire the business as the Viv platform, designed for both consumers and service providers, would be appropriate for the creation of an ecosystem that integrates all the devices and services of Samsung Electronics.”