Samsung: What is the tech giant up to?

The sales of the South Korean company Samsung have been stagnating for several years now(link). This is only surprising to a certain extent, since many tech products tend to decrease in price, especially when they are not as brand-strong as Apple. Increasing sales in the cell phone segment, for example, is likely to be difficult, as the market is already quite mature and Chinese competitors are becoming increasingly strong. The easiest way to increase sales is therefore to tap into high-growth segments such as robotics. Nikon seems to think similarly(link).

Samsung Bot

The company has long since trademarked "Samsung Bot" and made initial announcements and unveiled videos. It is clear that Samsung subsumes all kinds of applications, including industrial robots, exoskeleton robots, robotic vacuum machines, robotic kitchen utensils, humanoids and server robots under "Samsung Bot". The question is how concrete is the interest in industrial robots? Mobile household robots with one arm, e.g., to clean out the dishwasher, can be interpreted as precursors. These robots must be inexpensive and can probably be used for more undemanding tasks in factories. It also seems conceivable to me that experience can first be gained in this way, which can then be used in tougher continuous operation in companies.

Market for household robots growing rapidly

On the other hand, the household robotics market seems to be interesting enough for years to come. So far, it has primarily included vacuum cleaning or window cleaning robots. As the video shows, concrete handling activities are now being added. The sales potential for household robotics is expected to reach $9.7 billion this year. Five years earlier, the figure was just US$2 billion. It is interesting to note that Samsung is not only concerned with "lifestyle applications", but also with rehab robots, as this website shows. Ultimately, therefore, a very comprehensive approach is being pursued.

Are the robots also intended for Europe?

The question formulated in the headline also includes that of the temporal and geographical rollout. South Korea is probably several years ahead of us in terms of robotics, as gastronomy shows. It is quite possible that Samsung will first tackle robotics-affine countries before turning its attention to the old continent.

The video makes it clear that the robot has pattern recognition. Here, Samsung certainly benefits from its AI expertise gained through cell phone development.

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The author of this blog is significantly involved in the AI/robotics project Opdra. He advises robotics companies and investors on market analysis and funding/subsidies. More about him can be found here.