LG expands AI partnership with Amazon further from Google

South Korea’s LG Electronics said Sunday its voice-activated artificial intelligence platform will expand connections further with Amazon, enhancing LG’s smart home environment with global partners.

The company plans to unveil operations of its AI-based home appliance lineup being controlled by Amazon’s voice recognition speaker Amazon Echo at the upcoming tradeshow IFA 2017 that kicks off this Friday in Berlin, Germany. Amazon Echo runs based on its AI assistance program Alexa.

The latest expansion of partnership to Amazon means the Korean company aims to reach a broader range of consumers enabling them to experience LG’s smart home, the company said. 

As LG has been partnering with both Amazon and Google since last year, users of both Amazon Echo and Google Home -- a similar AI speaker run on Google Assistance -- would be able to operate LG products such as the robot cleaner by issuing verbal commands to the speakers, should the partnerships continue.

“LG’s gradually increasing the scope of cooperation with Amazon and Google,” a company official said. “Based on an open platform and open partnership strategy, the company will continue efforts to provide consumers with more chances to experience AI-based household appliances.”

LG’s AI-based smart home appliance lineup has seven products, ranging from the refrigerator, washing machine, dryer, air conditioner, air purifier, robot cleaner to oven range.

Last September, the company showcased its own AI platform Smart ThinQ Hub that runs on Alexa. In January, LG developed the partnership by applying the platform to its smart fridge and a home robot.

In May, the company demonstrated Google Home’s operations of an air purifier under the premium Signature brand.

While reinforcing the partnership with global payers, LG is also focusing on improving its proprietary Platform Smart ThinQ by trying to introduce smart products based on the program. It successfully launched an air conditioner with the company’s deep learning algorithm Deep ThinQ earlier this month.

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)