Samsung lays out vision for smarter, sustainable living at IFA

Samsung Electronics Co. on Thursday shared its vision and technological developments for what it sees as the future way of living: fully connected homes and an eco-friendly lifestyle.

The South Korean tech giant highlighted its latest products and innovations, built for sustainable and smart living, at a press conference, one day ahead of the official opening of the IFA tech trade show in Berlin.

Samsung, which has participated in the tech show since 1991, did not offer any exclusive product launches or make a big announcement at the 99th edition of the IFA consumer electrics fair.

It, however, showcased its latest home appliances and tech products as one of the most prominent exhibitors at City Cube Berlin, the 6,026-square-meter standalone exhibition center inside the Messe Berlin Exhibition Grounds.

Attended by hundreds of journalists, industry officials and partners, Samsung's press conference was opened by the keynote speech by Benjamin Braun, Samsung's chief marketing officer for Europe, under the banner of "Connection that Matters."

"We have for you over 200 absolutely amazing products on show behind here today because innovation must never stop," Braun said.

"We've learned 70 percent of the people we spoke to were excited about the innovations in smart home living and how they can make their lives more enjoyable," he said.

While people might be skeptical about new things that did not exist before, Braun said Samsung is "proud to be leaders and we will continue to innovate however strange it might seem" in the beginning.

Samsung has been working to expand users of its SmartThings home control and automation platform.

At global tech fairs, including the annual CES that takes place in Las Vegas in early January, Samsung's catchphrase has been "Do the SmartThings" for years, and not surprisingly, the slogan again decorated the inside and outside of the City Cube Berlin.

Samsung estimated more than 280 million people were using the SmartThings ecosystem worldwide, and stressed how helpful the system is for users in living a smarter life and leaving smaller environmental footprints.

"By next year, all new Samsung products will be wifi-enabled to help you to unlock the full potential of a truly connected home," Braun said.

Last year, the South Korean tech giant said it would achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 by using more renewable energy, investing in technologies to make energy-efficient products and increasing water reuse.

At the press conference, Samsung said it has reduced carbon emissions in its product use phase by over 900,000 tons and 31 percent of its operations have been running on renewable energy since 2021, among other things.

Samsung said SmartThings Energy's power-saving feature AI Energy mode will be more widely available around the world, so that consumers take more active actions on their energy use and reduce utility bills.

The mode's enhanced AI system on home appliances, like washing machines, fridges and TVs, helps users save up to 70 percent of energy on select cycles, according to the company.

Taking its smarter home campaign to the next level, Samsung said it will continue working toward supporting the smart home standard Matter to unify the fragmented consumer appliances market and enhance their interoperability regardless of manufacturer. (Yonhap)