The main stage for artificial intelligence (AI) competition is rapidly moving beyond smartphones and cars into the home. An all-out war to preempt the ‘AI Home’ market is unfolding, involving not only LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics but also global Big Tech players like Google and Amazon. The judgment is that with the smartphone market stagnating, the home is the space where consumers can experience AI most extensively in their daily lives.
LG Electronics (066570.KS) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with GS E&C (006360.KS) on the 10th for the joint development of next-generation AI homes. The core of this agreement is linking LG Electronics’ AI home hub platform ‘ThinQ ON’ with the infrastructure of GS E&C’s residential brand ‘Xi’ complexes. The strategy goes beyond simply connecting home appliances and Internet of Things (IoT) devices, aiming to integrate the entire apartment complex into a single AI living sphere.
Once this solution is realized, residents will be able to call elevators, check parking locations, and reserve community facilities with a single voice command. Services are also being promoted where the home robot ‘LG Cloid’ handles waste separation, patrols, and deliveries within the complex. Ryu Jae-cheol, President of LG Electronics, stated, “We hope to create a standard for future living where AI, robots, and space are in harmony.” This extends the ‘Future Residential Robot Service Model Building MOU’ signed by the two companies in April, which at the time focused on establishing apartment design standards conducive to robot navigation and deploying autonomous delivery robots.
LG Electronics is also pursuing an approach of embedding AI from the housing design phase. On the 29th of last month, it unveiled a new modular housing product where living rooms and kitchens are manufactured as modules in a factory and assembled on-site, with ‘ThinQ ON’ and a system air conditioner installed as standard features. At ‘ThinQ Real,’ a roughly 30-pyeong research space set up at LG Sciencepark in Seoul’s Magok district, verification work is in full swing, accumulating data on residents’ movements and usage patterns by linking AI appliances and sensors.
Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) is also accelerating the spread of AI homes through modular housing. Samsung Electronics partnered with the housing specialist company Gongganjejakso to introduce the ‘Samsung AI Modular Home.’ A key feature of this home is that around 20 types of AI appliances and devices linked to the IoT platform ‘SmartThings’ are pre-installed at the factory before delivery. The house itself operates like a single platform, with curtains and lights turning off and air conditioners and air purifiers automatically switching modes at a single “going out” command. Samsung Electronics aims to supply 10,000 units within three years, with prices starting from 5 million won per pyeong (3.3㎡), approximately $3,350. The plan is to eventually expand the application scope to general apartments, offices, and accommodation facilities, pursuing the ‘AI-ification of all spaces.’
Meanwhile, global Big Tech firms are challenging the smart home hub market, spearheaded by AI speakers. Google overhauled its voice assistant into ‘Gemini for Home’ last month and launched a dedicated speaker for $99.99. However, a monthly subscription fee of $10 is required to use core features like real-time conversation. Amazon expanded ‘Alexa+’ across the United States in February. A distinctive feature is the ability to control home devices using natural language without fixed commands; for instance, saying “Get ready for a movie” controls the lights, curtains, and TV all at once.
Experts view the AI home competition as a watershed moment that will determine hegemony in the residential platform market, going beyond simple appliance sales. Jung Yeon-seung, a business administration professor at Dankook University, diagnosed, “Consumer time has shifted from smartphones to cars, and now back to the home. Since the home is the final destination of connectivity, the company that controls the home ultimately controls everything.” Indeed, preempting the AI home platform allows for business expansion not only in appliance sales but also into security, energy management, robot services, maintenance, and subscription services. In particular, there is significant potential for expanding the business-to-business (B2B) market through collaboration with construction companies, and a ‘lock-in’ effect is also anticipated, where a platform once established leads to residents’ additional appliance purchases and service usage.