Artificial Intelligence at Samsung – Two Use Cases

Samsung is a leading technology enterprise committed to helping people live more connected lives through innovative consumer electronics. The company has grown into a global powerhouse with a diverse range of businesses, including electronics, finance, chemicals, and more.

In 2024, Samsung reported an annual revenue of $205 billion. Samsung also employed 262,647 people globally as of the end of 2024. The company operates across 76 countries with over 240 global bases, making it one of the largest technology corporations in the world.

Although specific investment amounts in AI are not publicly disclosed, there is substantial evidence that Samsung is actively integrating artificial intelligence into its operations to enhance efficiency and improve user experiences.

This analysis focuses on two AI use cases that serve Samsung’s business goals:

• Automating maritime operations: Leveraging advanced computer vision to enable fully autonomous vessel operations, thereby reducing crew dependency and achieving greater operational efficiency in shipbuilding.

• Enhancing smart home appliances: Using machine learning and predictive analytics to achieve improved fabric protection, energy savings, and sales growth in AI-enabled appliances.

Enhancing Smart Home Appliances

For Samsung, maintaining market leadership in the increasingly competitive home appliance sector For Samsung, maintaining market leadership in the increasingly competitive home appliance sector required addressing evolving consumer expectations for innovative, connected, and energy-efficient solutions.

With Samsung holding 21% market share as the #1 home appliance manufacturer in the 2023 US market, according to the Korea Herald’s market research, the company needed to differentiate its products.

As a result, Samsung identified three primary consumer challenges:

• Food Waste Crisis: Globally, 40% of food grown goes uneaten due to neglect and poor management, according to the World Wildlife Fund. Consumers struggle to track food inventory, monitor expiration dates, and optimize meal planning, resulting in significant financial and environmental waste.
• Energy Inefficiency: Many household electronics and small devices were not originally designed with energy efficiency as a primary function, leading to unnecessary electricity consumption. According to data referenced in an EPA-supported analysis of U.S. utility bills, electronic products now account for about 13% of total household electricity use, nearly triple their share in 1980.
• Manual Appliance Management: Consumers must manually select wash cycles, determine detergent amounts, manage temperature settings, and coordinate multiple disconnected appliances throughout their homes.

According to an online consumer survey conducted by Samsung, respondents expect the following from AI solutions:

In 2024, Samsung launched its Bespoke AI line of home appliances, featuring AI chips, internal cameras, built-in Wi-Fi, and SmartThings integration. These appliances — including refrigerators, washers, and dryers — feature an ‘AI Home’ dashboard and support voice control via Bixby, enabling users to manage connected devices from a central touchscreen or by voice.

Some models use features such as AI Vision Inside (which recognizes foods in the fridge) and an AI-based Energy Mode (which can optimize compressor speed and defrost cycles based on usage), reflecting Samsung’s push toward smarter, more efficient household appliances.”

Voice-activated AI assistants enable personalized household management through natural conversation, automatically adjusting settings, proactively alerting on maintenance needs, and offering tailored recommendations across connected appliances.

Bespoke’s capabilities are showcased in various appliances with different workflows:

AI Vision Inside:

1. Continuously monitors food placement and removal via an internal refrigerator camera.
2. Uses real-time image processing to identify 37 distinct food items (fresh produce and processed foods) when unobscured.
3. Automatically updates the digital food inventory in the SmartThings app with machine learning algorithms.
4. Tracks expiration dates and sends alerts when food approaches spoilage, according to Samsung’s consumer guide.
5. Integrates with the recipe recommendation engine to suggest meals based on available ingredients.

AI Wash+ features AI algorithms combined with integrated sensors for fabric analysis and load optimization:

1. Detects laundry weight, fabric type, and soil level with multiple sensors.
2. Uses AI algorithms to identify five fabric categories: Normal, Delicates, and Towels (for “loads up to 3kg”), as well as Outdoor, and Denim.
3. Automatically determines the detergent amount, wash time, and spin speed with integrated models.
4. Extends the drying phase with AI Optimal Dry technology, detecting fabric moisture, optimizing drying time, and minimizing wrinkles, according to a Samsung blog post.

Ultimately, these technologies delivered consumer satisfaction due to several improvements:

• Customized recipes and real-time ingredient tracking to provide consumers seamless access to knowledge, no matter their location.
• AI Wash+ delivers 40% faster washing via extended settings, 25% more fabric protection for delicate items, and 99.9% bacteria elimination in the Hygiene Steam cycle, per a Samsung Newsroom briefing.
• According to another Samsung Newsroom briefing, AI Energy Mode can deliver up to 10% energy savings in refrigerators, up to 20% in Air conditioners, and up to 70% in washing machines.

Samsung’s Bespoke AI strategy has successfully positioned the company to capture disproportionate value in the rapidly growing smart home market. By addressing fundamental consumer problems through measurable AI capabilities, Samsung has achieved both immediate commercial success and long-term competitive differentiation.

Bespoke AI laundry, for example, sold 1,000 units within three days of launch in South Korea and exceeded 10,000 units within its first year, per a Samsung interview with Miyoung Yoo, Executive Vice President of SW Development Team, Digital Appliances Business.

In 2024, Samsung received more J.D. Power awards than any other company for kitchen and laundry appliances, with several products ranking number one in customer satisfaction, according to the same interview. These accolades represent measurable differentiation in a crowded market where consumer perception directly correlates with pricing power and market share defense.​

Automating Maritime Operations

Samsung Heavy Industries, among the world’s largest shipbuilders, faced urgent challenges stemming from global labor shortages, inefficient manual workflows, and rising complexity in vessel construction.

Through its advanced shipbuilding operations at the Geoje Shipyard, the company identified three operational and strategic challenges:

• Labor Shortages: The maritime industry was experiencing an unprecedented shortage of skilled seafarers, with British maritime research firm Drewry projecting a shortfall of more than 8% or 55,000 maritime officers worldwide by 2027. The labor shortage directly affected both vessel and maintenance operations, creating an urgent need for automation solutions.
• Time-to-Market Pressure: Samsung Heavy Industries was managing a massive $28.6 billion backlog, according to a Maritime Executive conversation with Samsung Heavy Industries Director Jung Nam Lee. The company needed to accelerate production and assembly operations to meet strong demand for liquefied natural gas.
• Process Optimization Needs: Paper blueprints posed significant challenges for Samsung as they were difficult to modify when design changes were necessary, prone to damage, and prone to costly errors, according to Korea Economic Daily coverage.

In response, Samsung Heavy Industries developed a comprehensive AI-powered shipbuilding ecosystem that addresses these challenges through multiple integrated technologies:

The company developed the Samsung Autonomous Ship System (SAS) with Advanced AI Navigation, dubbed the ‘Tesla of the sea,’ that integrates Samsung’s shipbuilding expertise with advanced information technology. According to a report by the London Maritime Academy, the system enables autonomous determination of optimal routes, with human oversight required only for mission-based operations and navigation to destinations, per reporting by the London Maritime Academy.

The autonomous vessel incorporates Samsung Electronics’ SmartThings IoT system, enabling real-time data collection and analysis to ensure smooth, reliable maintenance operations. This integration provides comprehensive vessel performance monitoring, allowing ships to navigate and dock without crew/labor involvement, according to coverage by Marine Insight.

Beyond addressing labor shortages, Samsung deployed several other AI capabilities to resolve shortcomings:

• A press release from Samsung’s partner, Dassault Systèmes, claims that the capability enabled real-time information, optimized production planning, and construction cost savings.
• Samsung became the world’s first shipbuilder to implement an entirely paperless, AI-powered shipyard in October 2024. The company is replacing blueprints with 3D digital models and digital twin technology to enable real-time workflows and reduce errors throughout the design process, according to reporting by the Korea Economic Daily.

Because these technologies have been deployed recently, no specific business outcomes have been published. However, Wang-Guen in the Korea Bizwire interview projects that:

• Over 600,000 sheets of paper used for production blueprints will be saved annually, translating to cost and efficiency reductions.
• 45% reduction in labor hours required for outfitting installation designs.

Meanwhile, the autonomous ship system is poised to:

• Reduce fuel shipping costs by up to 15% in the case of a European trucking company cited by a broad McKinsey study on AI use cases.
• Fill in labor gaps, thereby addressing the 55,000+ officer shortage by 2027, per a report on research firm Drewry’s estimate.