Samsung’s vision for artificial intelligence is much more than adding AI features to its smartphones. After the recent Galaxy Z Fold series event in London, I talked to the company’s CEO, TM Roh, about where he sees the smartphone going and what Samsung has planned.
I suggested that the Galaxy Z Fold8, with its distinctive passport shape, was the star of the Unpacked event and asked if this form factor would be the heart of Samsung’s foldable range going forward.
“Samsung’s strategy is not built around competing on one dimension alone. Foldables require hardware innovation, AI experiences, ecosystem integration and long-term reliability to work together, and Samsung’s advantage comes from having refined that full experience across seven generations,” Roh explained.
“Across the line-up, we create experiences that feel natural for different users, rather than expecting one device to serve everyone in the same way. Pricing and value will always matter, but our focus is on delivering a foldable experience that feels genuinely useful, trusted and worth choosing in everyday life,” he added.
Here, he touched on a subject that he’d come back to, that the company doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all approach. “It comes from recognizing that consumer needs are becoming increasingly diverse,” he said.
Galaxy AI As An Infrastructure Layer
Samsung sees AI as an infrastructure layer running across its entire ecosystem, from Galaxy phones and wearables to TVs and home appliances. The goal, Roh said, is an AI that understands the individual user and can act on their behalf.
“There are many AI models and AI services available today. But Samsung is particularly well positioned because Galaxy AI is available wherever and whenever the user needs it. The real differentiator is personalization.”
“The features, services, experiences and inputs generated through Galaxy devices can be remembered and analyzed through our personal data intelligence engine. That allows us to offer more advanced and personalized AI experiences,” he went on, hammering home the point that Samsung devices will put Galaxy AI front-and-center.
Samsung’s View Of AI
It’s like seeing AI as infrastructure rather than a feature. “As for agentic AI, that is, AI that completes tasks on your behalf, we see it like this. Moving forward, the competitive advantage will no longer be just about how intelligent AI is, but it will be more about how well AI understands the user,” Roh emphasized, and explained why it was important.
“No other company is as deeply embedded in the user’s daily life as Samsung, with its diverse ecosystem of devices spanning from foldables and watches to TVs and home appliances.”
“AI will become a core and basic component of our daily lives and experiences,” Roh insisted. “This means Samsung will be able to understand customers more deeply, present more possibilities and offer richer experiences, based not only on mobile devices but across the entire Samsung product ecosystem.”
Beyond Smartphones: AI Companions And Smart Glasses
AI across phones, watches, smart rings and other products is intriguing, and Roh went further. “Mobile devices are particularly well positioned because they are always with us and are used for long periods of time. They have multiple sensors that can perceive the environment, applications that receive input from users and the ability to provide information back to them. For that reason, I believe mobile devices will remain the core and foundational products in the AI era, but alongside them, we will see the evolution of many more AI companion devices.”
Exactly what, I wonder, would these other devices be? Roh had an answer ready. “The intelligent eyewear we announced is a good example. It can use a camera to see what the user is seeing, understand voice input and respond through speakers. It can sense what the user is doing, what they want and what is happening around them,” he explained, adding that health was an important area, with watches, rings and even earbuds.
“Audio devices such as earbuds can understand the surrounding environment and accept voice instructions. Those devices could also present useful information to the user. And there is considerable potential in the home. AI could be controlled through a central hub, through new companion devices or through existing products such as televisions and robot vacuum cleaners, which could sense and respond to their environment.”
Addressing Privacy And Hallucinations With Samsung’s Hybrid Security
All very well, but AI, I suggested, is something people feel hesitant about, worried about privacy and concerned chatbots can hallucinate.
“Galaxy AI is designed to help address these hesitations by making AI more useful, transparent and secure in everyday use. Rather than presenting AI only as a standalone chatbot, Samsung integrates it across Galaxy devices so users can complete practical tasks with greater ease and efficiency,” Roh said.
And not everything will be done in the cloud. Roh added,“Trust is also supported through user control. Galaxy AI uses a hybrid approach that combines on-device processing, cloud AI and trusted partner technologies depending on the task. Through Knox-based security and transparent controls, Samsung aims to enable users to understand and manage how AI operates and how their data is used, helping them use AI with greater confidence.”
“Our philosophy is openness. We don’t believe we should force only Samsung’s own AI on users. We want to work with partners and use the technology that provides the best experience for a particular user and scenario. At the same time, we need to provide a unified experience.
Facing New Foldable Competition
Finally, the recent releases happened at a time when Apple is about to enter the foldable market. What would that mean to Samsung, I wonder? Roh didn’t mention other brands but had a clear answer.
“The foldable market has now reached a stage of maturity, both technologically and in terms of adoption,” he said. “More companies will enter the market, and we welcome that. But Samsung has seven years of experience in foldable technology and, equally importantly, seven years of understanding how customers use these devices. That knowledge cannot be replicated overnight.”
“People have different lifestyles and different requirements. That is why we have expanded the range of form factors. Ultimately, the most important thing is still listening to what consumers want and expect. That is the foundation of our innovation at Samsung.”