Samsung has a trait that differentiates itself from other smartphone manufacturers — patience. Everything about smartphones has become geared towards ever-greater numbers — bigger camera, bigger screen, faster processor and whatnot. Samsung achieved that long ago. What next? Meaningful changes to the way we use smartphones.

The new Samsung Galaxy S24 series has set the tone for 2024. The message is clear — instead of just spec sheet figures, offer meaningful ways in which AI can be used to speed up productivity. Don’t spread fears around AI but show ways the new technology can help us collectively. The new phone series has allowed the company to walk five steps forward instead of the usual one. And whatever phone launches this year, it will have a tough time living up to the offerings of the new series.

The patience with which the company has implemented the changes also defines the man everyone at Samsung India looks up to — JB Park, president and CEO of Samsung Southwest Asia. “The message is an important one — the new Galaxy phones can be personalised. AI can aid personalisation by means of analyzing patterns, behaviour, lifestyle and creativity. Productivity will also kick in to help those personalisation be more specific to the individual,” he said while meeting a group of journalists in San Jose, soon after the launch of the new Galaxy S24 lineup.

Productivity enhancement

JB has always been careful with words and over the years I have never seen him overpromise. What the new Samsung phones promise are AI features that we will enjoy using in everyday life. Take the case of how AI can break down communication barriers, which is seen with the Live Translate feature, one of the best use cases of AI. It allows a two-way, real-time voice and text translations of phone calls within the native app. Then there is the Interpreter using which live conversations can be translated on a split-screen view. Dive into messaging where Chat Assist can help perfect conversational tones to ensure communication sounds as it was intended. AI is even in the Samsung keyboard that can also translate messages in real-time in 13 languages, including Hindi.

JB Park, president and CEO, Samsung Southwest Asia

The man is at the same time cautious with how AI is deployed. “Personally, I think it is important that you honor privacy. If you have evolved (to the point) that data is actually analyzing your life pattern where you go, where you shop, how much you spend… it is scary. So for me, personalisation means that you have to have a secure device, a secure Cloud base… that someone cannot look into your personal or private lifestyle. That is the most important part for me. Since I work at Samsung, productivity enhancement is the most important feature that I look forward to,” said JB.

Samsung is working with different governments to ensure there are guardrails when it comes to AI. Widespread adoption could always help AI rapidly improve further.

“We honour the privacy of individuals. AI should not in any way invade or misuse or be a tool to be harmful to an individual, physically or mentally. In that way, Samsung is participating in all government initiatives, policies, and we are driving a safe roadmap with the continent… trying to see where the boundaries are. AI is machine learning, and is machine learning against mankind? I don’t think so. But there are fears that it could evolve in a different way, based on who directs them to do what, right? That’s also human. We are evolving ourselves in a very innovative way. Everybody has a different path of thinking about what they want to accomplish. This AI tool should always be a companion instead of a controlling mechanism,” said JB.

The last time we met was at a restaurant serving Indian food in Seoul for the launch of Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5. Between the two meetings, AI made enough progress and so has Samsung. It’s interesting to note how the company spent more than an hour talking about the AI smartphone at SAP Centre, San Jose. Yes, there were mentions of hardware specs but it was more about software features. That’s where the future of smartphones reside. It cannot be about megapixels all the time.

“This Unpack was very different from those in the past. Hardware features have limitations. Why is AI important to India? Diversity is a factor that will drive AI. In India, Hindi is one of the many languages but to enable dialogue between groups, AI can help. We have so many intelligent and smart engineers at our R&D facilities who work throughout the year, innovating and upgrading. What differentiates Samsung from the other brands? Our brilliant software engineers are looking at local use cases and lifestyles,” he said.

Flagship redefined

The way flagship phones are approached needs to change and Samsung has taken a lead. A few days ago, a rival Android brand launched a flagship device with all the hardware bells and whistles but there was almost no talk of software improvements and that showed when we reviewed the device. If my 2022 phone can take great pictures, why buy a phone in 2024? That’s where software comes in. The meaning of flagship phones is being redefined.

“Among the youth, you have a better experience while playing games. In entertainment, the flagship phone gives a better output as far as picture quality goes and also while you play games. You don’t lose out on some of the sophisticated elements that can result in higher scores. Productivity kicks in when you have a larger screen, like more than a seven-inch screen [like on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5]. You don’t have to carry a tablet. Everything is accessible in a foldable device that can offer a larger screen that can give you a faster access to documents or you don’t have to use your fingers to zoom in and out… these kinds of thing requires a lot of computation, more power in the GPUs and CPUs. I think flagship is the ultimate destination for consumers,” said JB.

Premiumization of smartphones has been a trend for some time globally. India too is witnessing a spurt in this category. “India will see this grow exponentially with the aid of bringing affordability platforms, trade-in platforms, then you can invest your capital not everything at once but spread out your financial burden. So that is one part that will enable premiumization to the next level. And another one is the experience that you will have in a flagship phone is much different. And Samsung is leading in that technology leadership, I believe, giving the best experience with our flagship. I think people will upgrade to the next level,” he said.

Samsung is going big on AI and the messaging was clear at its Unpacked event in San Jose in January

The new Samsung phones have both on-device AI as well as Cloud-based AI, depending on the feature you use. Samsung is the first Google Cloud partner to deploy Gemini Pro on Vertex AI to consumers. JB spoke about how AI can be meaningful. “We have on-device and then we have Cloud-based AI features. The Cloud-based is partner led and we have great partners that help us develop these AI features... however, it’s important to have privacy. We also have on-device AI functionality. It’s a technology that can help in many ways. For example, if you have a home appliance and you are not aware of the part of a TV that is malfunctioning. You won’t know until you call the service center and say, ‘The sound is coming out in an abnormal way.’ Then the service guy will come in. AI can help analyse. What if AI can troubleshoot? What if AI can put out a signal to diagnose the device? AI can recommend if a TV can be repaired or if its needs to be replaced. It’s an example of how AI can be used in a positive way. We think too much about the fear of around AI. I think there are positive ways in which AI can help save dollars, like energy management system… you can manage energy efficiency by using this AI platform. And we partner only with trusted partners.”

What’s next for Samsung? Well, surely more AI features in the coming months and Samsung Galaxy Ring, a new product that will shake up the wearable sector.

AI high points on Galaxy S24 series

Live Translate: A two-way, real-time voice and text translations of phone calls within the native app.

Chat Assist: Can help perfect conversational tones to ensure communication sounds as it was intended.

Note Assist: Features AI-generated summaries, template creationthat streamlines notes with pre-made formats.

Transcript Assist: Uses AI and speech-to-text technology to transcribe, summarise and even translate recordings.

Galaxy AI editing tools: Enable simple edits like erase, re-compose, and remaster.

Edit Suggestion: Uses Galaxy AI to suggest perfectly suitable tweaks for each photo.

Generative Edit: Can fill in parts of an image background with generative AI.

Instant Slow-mo: Can generate additional frames based on movements to smoothly slow down action-packed moments for a more detailed look.