The South Korean tech giant unveiled the 2024 versions of its flagship Galaxy smartphone series on Wednesday (Jan. 17), and they feature U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm’s latest AI-capable Snapdragon processor and Samsung’s own Galaxy AI software and services, the Financial Times (FT) reported Wednesday.
Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series introduces a suite of AI-enabled features, including live phone call translations, transcription of voice recordings, video search and photo editing, according to the report.
When previewing its new smartphones on Jan. 2, Samsung said their launch would mark a “new era of mobile AI.”
Generative AI is integral to Samsung’s long-term product strategy, especially in the premium and flagship segments, Sheng Win Chow, an analyst at Canalys, said, per the FT report. To compete with Apple, Samsung must continue to innovate beyond hardware and explore new business models.
The introduction of these generative AI-powered features comes at a time when Samsung has lost its lead in the smartphone market to Apple after holding it since 2010. This happened during the same year in which smartphone shipments dropped to their lowest full-year level in a decade.
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With the launch of the S24 Android phones, Samsung seems to have gained a technological edge over its main rival, Apple, the report said. Apple has been relatively quiet about its efforts in this space. This presents an opportunity for Samsung to differentiate itself, Bryan Ma, an analyst at IDC, said in the FT report.
The popularization of generative AI has led mobile phone makers to explore the potential of running AI features directly on devices, according to the report. This requires advancements in reducing the size of large language models (LLMs) and improving processor performance. Overcoming these technological challenges will enable AI chatbots and apps to run on the phone’s own hardware and software, resulting in faster response times, enhanced security, and personalized experiences for users.
Canalys predicts that 5% of smartphones shipped this year will be AI-capable, and this number is expected to reach 45% of the total smartphone market by 2027, the report said.
Counterpoint Research expects Samsung to control nearly half of the AI-powered phone market in the next couple of years, per the report.
