LG rolls out its ThinQ AI into a sleek new crew of connected home helpers

The relentless march of integrated AI continues, this time courtesy of LG. The South Korean electronics giant is now well advanced with its ThinQ technology, which started out with the incorporation of Wi-Fi into refrigerators, part of the first wave of so-called smart devices. The subsequent rise and fall of the interconnected ‘internet of things’ seemed to imply that consumers weren’t all that bothered about having an always-on connection with their white goods.

The rise of AI seems to have changed all that. LG’s ThinQ series has evolved to keep pace with the shiny new definition of ‘smart’. Last year, the company released the ThinQ ON Home Hub, a centralised voice-activated device that serves a similar function to an Alexa or Google voice assistant, only with direct connectivity to LG’s suite of enabled appliances, from televisions and projectors, to lighting systems, fridges and robot vacuums.

In Seoul, LG has a popular ThinQ show home, where the voice activation powers of the system can be sampled. Crucially, the company is opening up the device’s API (Application Programming Interface) to other manufacturers, allowing for cross-pollination between other smart devices – one of the Achilles’ heels of early, so-called walled garden systems.

So what kind of future does LG envisage? Connectivity and intelligence are all very well but applying them in useful but not intrusive ways is the key to making a smart home more appealing. This ‘LG AI Appliances Orchestra’, as the company calls it, is a symphony of small smart enhancements that add up to a cohesive overall service.

For example, LG’s new range of washing machines use AI to weigh the contents of a wash and automatically select the most efficient programme – its dryers can even detect fabric type to avoid damaging clothing. Both appliances can signal progress and any potential problems via the LG app, as well as customising start-up screens and melodies to signal the end of a wash cycle.

LG’s new robot vacuum incorporates mopping and steam cleaning, as well as better object recognition and navigation. The oven can be automatically pre-heated – the ThinQ AI can even recommend healthy recipes – while LG’s new ridges can notify you when temperatures drop or the door is left open. The company has even gone beyond the home with the Spielraum concept car, co-developed with Kia, to showcase how the exact same AI assistant could be taken with you on the road.

Hubs like LG’s ThinQ ON simply offer a portal into new ways of interacting with objects that were once out of sight, out of mind and only edged into our consciousness when we actually needed to use them. That’s not necessarily progress, unless there’s a significant accompanying premium like energy efficiency or genuine convenience. Regardless, universal voice control is coming, whether we like it or not.

Hot on the heels of the ON Home Hub, LG revealed a conceptual Smart Home AI agent, a glimpse at what a future robotic housekeeper might look like in service of the company’s end goal, the ‘Zero Labour Home’. Anyone familiar with the social and technological history of domestic labour might scoff at the idea that the emotional labour of household management can be offloaded onto a cute little robot, even if ‘Affectionate Intelligence’ and empathy are its prime directives.

Whether the future is robot-driven or just app-based, companies like LG won’t stop striving for better ways to conduct their orchestra of appliances. Together, LG hopes, they’ll play a tune of greater efficiency for all.

More information at LG.com