Samsung Showcases ‘Companion to AI Living’ Strategy at CES 2026 First Look

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has unveiled its bold “Companion to AI Living” vision at The First Look, its CES® 2026 showcase held at the Latour Ballroom in Las Vegas. The presentation positioned artificial intelligence not as a standalone feature, but as the philosophical backbone of Samsung’s entire ecosystem—shaping product development, operations, and user experience across devices.

Opening the event, TM Roh, CEO and Head of Samsung’s Device eXperience (DX) Division, emphasized that Samsung’s strength lies in its vast, connected ecosystem. By embedding AI across mobile devices, displays, home appliances, and services, the company aims to deliver a truly personal AI companion that enhances daily life beyond basic functionality. According to Roh, Samsung’s approach enables technology to create meaningful moments by intuitively adapting to users’ needs, habits, and environments.

Entertainment Companion: Redefining the Role of the Screen

Samsung’s Visual Display leadership showcased how AI is transforming entertainment from passive viewing into an interactive, lifestyle-driven experience. SW Yong, President and Head of the Visual Display Business, alongside Sukhmani Mohta, outlined Samsung’s latest display innovations built on two decades of TV industry leadership.

At the center of the lineup is the new 130-inch Micro RGB display, a landmark achievement in size and picture quality. Powered by microscopic red, green, and blue diodes that operate independently, the display delivers unprecedented color accuracy, brightness, and realism. Its Timeless Frame design minimizes distractions, allowing visuals to command full attention. The Micro RGB AI Engine Pro precisely manages color output to deliver stunning clarity across every scene.

Complementing this hardware is Samsung’s Vision AI Companion (VAC), which transforms the TV into a full entertainment and lifestyle assistant. VAC offers personalized content recommendations, suggests meals inspired by on-screen scenes, curates music based on mood, and adapts sound and picture settings in real time. For sports fans, AI Soccer Mode Pro recreates stadium-level visuals and sound, while AI Sound Controller Pro allows users to independently adjust crowd noise, commentary, or background music using voice commands.

VAC also extends beyond entertainment. Users can ask for recipes inspired by shows they are watching, aligned with personal health goals, and seamlessly send them to connected kitchen appliances or mobile devices like the newly introduced Movingstyle, designed for easy movement throughout the home.

Samsung also expanded its audio ecosystem with two new WiFi speakers—the Music Studio 5 and 7—featuring a minimalist dot design by renowned designer Erwan Bouroullec. The speakers enhance both aesthetics and sound integration across Samsung’s ecosystem.

The 2026 TV lineup introduces ultra-thin designs like the OLED S95H, the VAC-powered Freestyle+ portable projector, and support for HDR10+ ADVANCED, which Samsung will debut first. The lineup also features Eclipsa Audio, Samsung’s new spatial sound technology, and its most advanced Odyssey gaming monitors, including the world’s first 6K 3D Odyssey G9.

All displays run on Samsung’s most powerful Tizen OS, now guaranteed to receive seven years of upgrades, ensuring long-term evolution well beyond purchase.

Home Companion: Appliances That Think Ahead

Samsung also detailed its transformation of home appliances into intelligent companions. Cheolgi Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of the Digital Appliances Division, announced that SmartThings now serves over 430 million users globally, providing Samsung with unparalleled insight into real-world home behavior.

At the heart of the smart home is the upgraded Family Hub refrigerator, now enhanced with AI Vision powered by Google Gemini. The system accurately tracks food items entering and leaving the fridge, simplifies meal planning, and offers recipe suggestions through features like “What’s for Today?“, “Video to Recipe”, and “FoodNote”, which provides weekly insights into food usage and restocking needs.

Laundry and garment care were also reimagined. The Bespoke AI Laundry Combo eliminates the need to transfer loads, while the new Bespoke AI AirDresser uses steam and air jets to remove wrinkles effortlessly—saving time during busy mornings.

Samsung’s Bespoke AI Jet Bot Steam Ultra further expands smart home intelligence. Equipped with advanced sensors and powered by a Qualcomm processor, it can detect liquids, navigate precisely, monitor homes remotely, and respond to conversational voice commands through an enhanced Bixby.

Samsung also announced a first-of-its-kind partnership with Hartford Steam Boiler (HSB), enabling SmartThings-connected appliances to potentially reduce home insurance premiums. Following a successful U.S. pilot in 2025, the program will expand to more regions globally.

Care Companion: Proactive Health Through AI

Closing the presentation, Praveen Raja, Vice President and Head of Digital Health at Samsung Research America, introduced Samsung’s vision for proactive, AI-powered care. By connecting wearables, smartphones, and home devices, Samsung aims to detect potential health risks early and offer personalized coaching for sleep, exercise, and nutrition.

The ecosystem will also enable secure sharing of health metrics with providers via the Xealth platform and support virtual consultations. Samsung is further advancing dementia research, using wearables to identify subtle changes in movement, speech, and engagement.

Underpinning the entire ecosystem are Samsung Knox and Knox Matrix, which continuously evolve to protect user data and secure AI-driven experiences through advanced risk detection and model validation.

Samsung’s CES 2026 showcase reinforces its ambition to move beyond smart devices—toward a deeply integrated AI ecosystem that anticipates needs, simplifies daily life, and delivers truly human-centered technology.

Read Also: When Everything Clicks: Samsung Champions Open Ecosystems to Power the Future of Home AI at CES 2026