В этом году интерес к этому двухдневному мероприятию особый: все ждали появления первой информации о складном смартфоне с предполагаемым названием Galaxy F (или "Winner", согласно некоторым данным).
Большая часть полуторочасовой презентации была посвящена новейшим разработкам Samsung в области создания интеллектуального голосового помощника Bixby и дальнейшего развития собственной экосистемы "интернета вещей" (IoT). И это было не менее увлекательным, чем показ прототипа "Winner" в финальной части.
В Samsung основательно подошли к созданию удобных и хорошо продуманных инструментов для разработчиков приложений, которые собираются подключить свои сервисы к Bixby, поскольку транснациональный техногигант сделал свой AI-помощник открытым для сторонних партнёров. Каждый из них теперь сможет добавлять так называемые "капсулы" (программные модули), внедряя свои услуги в "сознание" Bixby, который в случае устного или текстового запроса донесёт предложения от этого сервиса до пользователя. В ближайшие месяцы в Bixby активируется поддержка ещё нескольких языков (британский английский, немецкий, французский, испанский, итальянский). Это вдобавок к уже существующим американскому английскому, корейскому и китайскому. Русского ещё придётся подождать, так как он попал в число второразрядных "благодаря" безумной политике нынешнего крмлёвского руководства, вступившего в конфронтацию со всем цивилизованным миром, что затормозило развитие страны на многие годы.
Интерфейс для разработчиков Bixby некоторые IT-специалисты уже сейчас называют "шедевральным", настолько он хорош визуально и логически выверен.
Эксперты полагают, что теперь AI-помощник от Samsung будет стремительно сокращать отставание от ранее стартовавших конкурентов от Google, Amazon и Microsoft. Центры искусственного интеллекта (AI), которые Samsung открывает в разных странах мира с одновременным привлечением лучших специалистов в этой области, станут настоящими локомотивами по совершенствованию возможностей Bixby и внедрению этого AI-помощника в нашу повседневную жизнь.
Анализируя действия техногиганта за последние 2-3 года, эксперты приходят к выводу, что Samsung подготовил отличную базу для укрепления своих позиций на рынке предоставления услуг от искусственного интеллекта. Так, например, в собственность южнокорейского чеболя перешла американская компания ViV-Labs, давно занимающаяся созданием AI, греческая софтверная компания Innoetics, успешно работающая в области совершенствования речевого аппарата AI, канадская компания облачных вычислений Joyent (она обеспечит обработку запросов, исходящих от пользователей Bixby), трнаснациональный конгломерат HARMAN со штаб-квартирой в США, который является ведущим поставщиком автомобильных мультимедийных систем и профессиональных аудиорешений, испанская компания Zhilabs, обслуживающая операторов мобильных сетей (в частности, ультраскоростных 5G) и т.д. Всё это, в конечном итоге, поможет Samsung в создании глобальной инфраструктуры, обслуживающей Bixby.
Электронный гигант также показал, что уверенно выполняет программу по внедрению IoT-технологий во все свои устройства к 2020 году. На SDC 2018 было объявлено о расширении номенклатуры девайсов, поддерживающих работу с Bixby. Теперь это не только холодильники серии Family Hub и телевизоры, но также климатические системы (кондиционеры и очистители воздуха), смарт-часы Galaxy Watch, кухонная техника (плиты, духовые шкафы), стиральные машины, смарт-акустика Galaxy Home и даже роботы-пылесосы. Также было подтверждено, что HARMAN работает над внедрением Bixby в автомобильные информационно-развлекательные панели. Предполагается, что первым такое оснащение получит суперпремиальный MASERATI.
И, наконец, под занавес вступительной части SDC18 был показан прототип давно ожидаемого складного смартфона, о котором мы упомянули выше. Разумеется, производитель постарался скрыть всякие нюансы дизайна будущего устройства с помощью накладного фальш-корпуса прямоугольной формы, продемонстрировав лишь уникальные возможности сгибающегося дисплея. Но даже этого было достаточно, чтобы понять, насколько "Winner" отличатся от "первого в мире" китайского уродца, показанного несколькими днями ранее.
Как и предполагалось, представители Samsung сообщили, что работали над программным обеспечением для "Winner" в тесном сотрудничестве с Google. В частности, были кратко продемонстрированы возможности интерфейса, поддерживающего одновременное раскрытие нескольких активных окон на большом экране. Правда, для специалистов осталось неясным, что мешало Samsung реализовать то же самое на базе собственной операционной платформы TIZEN, которая уже установлена на всех других IoT-устройствах ведущего южнокорейского брэнда. В ходе конференции было объявлено, что финальная версия аппарата поступит в продажу "в ближайшие месяцы".
На момент выхода этого материала, в кулуарах центра Moscone West, где проходит Samsung Developer Conference 2018, ещё продолжались различные тематические мероприятия для специалистов и разработчиков. Но об этом мы расскажем в следующих публикациях.
SDC 2018: Bixby, IoT and flexible smartphone
Building a Connected Future with SmartThings
What if you can complete chores at home and prepare your morning coffee in the office right from the dashboard of your car as you drive to work?
Mobile technology was designed to be taken everywhere, keeping us connected no matter where we go. Today, we have refrigerators with touchscreens, TVs and cars with Wi-Fi or LTE capabilities and security systems with cameras. The challenge has been developing a network, or ecosystem, that brings all these next-generation products together that creates a seamless connected experience.
Guided by a philosophy of developing meaningful innovation and a long-term vision of connected living, Samsung has worked hard to develop an IoT ecosystem that inspires and allows people to simply do more. At SDC 2017 we announced a consolidated SmartThings Cloud, bringing all of Samsung’s IoT devices and services in a centralized ecosystem and giving users complete control from a single app. Since the launch at the Samsung Developer Conference 2017, the ecosystem has grown rapidly, while global partnerships have helped millions around the world simplify their everyday life.
At SDC2018, Samsung is taking seamless connectivity to the next level, announcing new tools and programs that will reimagine how connected technologies help simplify our lives through an open and intelligent SmartThings platform available for everyone.
How Samsung Revolutionized Mobile Display
Creating solutions to simplify everyday life is the driving force behind Samsung’s innovations in mobile technology. Our users’ voices have helped us overcome technical challenges over the years, and continue to inspire us to develop new categories of smartphones and expand mobile experiences.
The development of Samsung’s cutting-edge mobile display is a prime example of this user-centric approach to innovation. As the conduit between the user and the smartphone, the display brings hardware and software together to deliver a holistic mobile experience.
This is why Samsung has always aimed to deliver the best display experience by listening closely to what users hope to achieve with their mobile devices. From the Super AMOLED Display to the cutting-edge Infinity Flex Display, user feedback has helped us to break new ground in mobile display technology consistently.
Samsung Introduces Powerful New Developer Tools for Bixby Platform
Bixby started as a practical way to use your voice to interact with your phone. Now, it is evolving into a scalable, open AI platform to support all of the devices in a consumer’s life.
Earlier this year, Samsung introduced the new Bixby – a more conversational, more personal and more useful intelligent assistant. Bixby keeps the dialogue moving forward to get things done. It gets to know you and learns from you, to personalize how it helps you. Bixby serves as your personal assistant, making it quick and easy to complete a variety of tasks from start to finish through a growing number of third-party partners. If you say, “Hi, Bixby, give me a restaurant recommendation,” Bixby remembers that you like a certain cuisine, like Italian, and brings those recommendations to the top of the list. Ask Bixby to buy tickets to a concert, and it will ask you follow up questions to find the best seats for you, making the process quicker and easier.*
Now Samsung is bringing that experience to even more devices and services. To evolve Bixby into Samsung’s intelligence platform, we have laid the groundwork to build a scalable AI platform, making it simpler and easier for developers to create user experiences powered by Bixby.
At Samsung Developer Conference 2018, we’re announcing that we’re opening Bixby Developer Studio, an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), to developers. It offers access to the same development tools Samsung’s internal developers use to create Bixby Capsules, which is what developers build to add features to Bixby. It’s all part of Samsung’s unique approach to AI, with the goal of building a scalable, open AI platform where developers and service providers can access tools to bring Bixby to more people and devices around the world.
“Our goal is to offer developers a robust, scalable and open AI platform that makes it easy for them to launch and evolve the amazing experiences they create for our users,” said Kyunghak Hyun, Product Manager of the AI Product Management Group at Samsung. “As Samsung’s ecosystem of devices continues to grow, it creates more points of contact not just for Bixby, but for a growing number of third-party services as well. Developers have more ways to reach users, and users get more opportunities to make the most of them.”
What We Mean by Connected Living – and What That Means for You
by DJ Koh, President and CEO, IT & Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics
At last year’s Samsung Developer Conference, I spoke about connected thinking, and touched on some of the incredible experiences that become possible when we unify connections across devices. Our announcement of SmartThings marked a big step toward creating that seamlessly connected future.
So much has happened since then. During the past year, game-changing technologies like 5G, which were once experimental, have become commercially available; breakthrough AI capabilities that once seemed impossible are now within reach; and SmartThings has evolved into the world’s most comprehensive open IoT platform.
Which brings us to where we stand today—at the cusp of a new era of discovery and invention. A time in which intelligent services connect people to the tools they need and the experiences they desire; a time of incredible economic opportunity, built on new insights about how the world works and what customers want; and a time in which the ubiquity of an IoT platform like SmartThings propels us beyond the era of connected thinking and into the era of connected living.
It is with great pride that I can say that Samsung has been at the forefront of many of the advances that have laid the foundation for this new era. In addition to expanding SmartThings, we’ve delivered AI innovations that are redefining connectivity and automation, we pioneered the development of 5G technologies, and we even launched the world’s first residential 5G service in the U.S.
Our partnerships—and of course, the support of the developer community—have been instrumental to getting us to this point, where the pieces are in place for intelligence that learns and adapts; 5G connectivity that makes smart cities, smart homes and autonomous vehicles a reality; and devices that are secure and powerful enough to transform how we interact with each other and the world around us.
This year’s Samsung Developer Conference (SDC18) marks a gigantic step toward finally delivering these once far-off technologies. Or, as we at Samsung like to think of it, the next step toward transforming what’s next into what’s now.
Here at SDC18, we’re unveiling new SmartThings development tools that will demonstrate the true value of connected living, as well as enhancements to our Bixby intelligence platform that will unlock the power of AI in more products and services, and new hardware and interface concepts that will unfold an exciting new future for mobile services.
Each innovation adds strength to the world’s most powerful technology ecosystem, and will ultimately help us create a new world of experiences that flow with people as they manage their lives and move through their day.
I truly believe that we’re standing at a turning point in our industry. A new generation of technological breakthroughs has opened the door for change at a pace unlike anything we’ve seen before, and created new opportunities on a scale that exceeds imagination. The potential to change people’s lives has never been greater, and the opportunities have never been more exciting.
SDC18 is all about seizing these opportunities. With the help of partners and developers who share our commitment to innovation inspired by people, we’ll foster an ecosystem of open innovation that spans every aspect of people’s lives. I can’t wait to see how the technologies we’re showcasing right now at SDC18 will be used to discover what comes next.
Samsung Reveals Breakthroughs in Intelligence, IoT and Mobile UX
Samsung Electronics today unveiled powerful new developer tools for its Bixby and SmartThings platforms, as well as new, powerful mobile experiences with One UI and Infinity Flex Display. To make connected living a reality, Samsung is making it easier for developers and partners to quickly build, launch and scale new experiences to millions of devices around the world.
“We have achieved significant advancements in AI and IoT, which will be crucial to bringing our connected living vision to life,” said DJ Koh, President and CEO of IT & Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics.
“The progress made to Bixby and SmartThings opens a new chapter where third party products and services can be integrated to the AI and IoT platforms at scale.
“The foldable display lays the foundation for a new kind of mobile experience. We are excited to work with developers on this new platform to create new value for our customers. We cannot wait to see where the technology and collaboration takes us.”
Building a Scalable Intelligence Platform
Bixby started as an intelligent interface, a practical way to use your voice to interact with your phone. Now, Samsung is evolving it into a scalable intelligence platform to support the diverse products and services in a consumer’s life. At SDC 2018, Samsung is unveiling new ways for developers to bring a more conversational, personal and useful intelligent assistant experience to more consumers.
To make it easier for developers to scale services powered by Bixby, Samsung is introducing the Bixby Developer Studio. The collection of tools provides an intuitive way for developers and partners to infuse intelligence into more services and devices. Developers will be able to easily create Bixby Capsules – features or services created for Bixby – and make them easily accessible to consumers in the Bixby Marketplace. The Bixby platform will allow developers to easily adapt their capsules from mobile phones and televisions to home appliances and other products across the Samsung ecosystem.
As part of its efforts to scale Bixby services, Samsung is expanding support to five new languages in the coming months, including British English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
Delivering a Connected Lifestyle for Everyone
Samsung’s connected living vision is centered around an open IoT ecosystem that unites the growing number of connected devices on a single platform. Available in more than 200 markets around the world, SmartThings delivers a connected experience in a single app, bringing IoT beyond the smart home, into the car, office and everywhere in-between.
Samsung is now making it faster and easier for developers to connect their devices and services to the SmartThings platform with a new suite of tools in the redesigned SmartThings Developer Workspace. These enhanced tools include SmartThings Cloud Connector, SmartThings Device Kit and SmartThings Hub Connector. Developers can build and launch on the platform, as well as easily integrate cloud-connected, Zigbee and Z-Wave devices.
Additionally, the upgraded Works with SmartThings (WWST) certification program gives developers direct access to SmartThings experts and resources. WWST helps ensure devices and services are fully optimized for the platform, so consumers enjoy the best possible experience.
Pioneering User Experience and Display Innovation
Samsung introduces a new and intuitive interface design called One UI. Its clean and minimal design keeps the most relevant content on the bottom half of the screen – making it more natural and comfortable for one-handed use. The experience was reengineered to reduce clutter and distractions, allowing the user to better focus and quickly navigate their phone.
Samsung continues to build on its legacy of category-defining form factor and display innovation that has paved the way for a breakthrough foldable smartphone form factor. The Infinity Flex Display together with One UI delivers a new kind of mobile experience allowing users to do things they couldn’t do with an ordinary smartphone. Users now have the best of both worlds: a compact smartphone that unfolds to reveal a larger immersive display for multitasking and viewing content. The app experience seamlessly transitions from the smaller display to the larger display as the device unfolds. In addition, users can browse, watch, connect and multitask without losing a beat, simultaneously using three active apps on the larger display.
Because the Infinity Flex Display is a next generation platform, Samsung invites developers to participate in this journey from the beginning. Working collaboratively with Google and the Android developer community, Samsung will maximize the potential of this new form factor to create an optimized foldable user experience.
For more information about Samsung Developer Conference 2018, please visit http://sdc.developer.samsung.com/. Further information can also be found on Twitter (@samsung_dev) and using the hashtag #SDC18.
About Samsung Developer Conference
SDC brings together thousands of developers and creators to explore today’s tech and visualize what’s possible in the future. The two-day conference will feature exciting keynote announcements, technical sessions and valuable networking time. Plus, Samsung product teams and technology partners will showcase the latest tech advances and tools.
