LAS VEGAS – In the land of entertainment, one thing that can often be more memorable than the product announcements at CES are the technical screw ups. At LG’s Monday morning press conference, where they boasted how they have integrated artificial intelligence into all their home products, their robot got stage fright.
All these CES product announcements are heavily scripted, so when LG's adorable CLOi robot refused to respond to multiple voice prompts by LG VP David VanderWaal to find the right setting on LG’s washing machine or to find a recipe, he was met with silence – except for laughter coming back from the audience. CLOi’s act of insubordination is made funnier by the fact that it’s only about 30 centimetres high but with glowing eyes similar to the fictional HAL 9000 robot from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
After the awkward silence on stage, I was just waiting for CLOi to come to life and respond “I’m sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that.” (Ed note: If you don’t know the Stanley Kubrick movie, Google how funny that is…) Now that would have been a cool demonstration of how AI can adapt and learn.
Despite the setback, VanderWaal forged ahead and explained how LG is focused on making useful robots that can carry out tasks. It unveiled three concept robots, under the new CLOi brand, specifically developed for commercial use at hotels, airports and supermarkets. The trio consists of robots that can serve food and drinks, handle luggage at an airport, and a CLOi shopping robot, that can follow you around stores.
The CLOi shopping cart robot includes a barcode reader that customers can use to scan items and view product prices as they’re placed within the robot’s bin. The robot’s “face” will also display all items on the shopping list and through a smartphone app will guide the consumer through the store via the most direct route.
LG’s CLOi robots are being developed in parallel with LG ThinQ, the company’s AI brand for consumer electronics and home appliances. Both CLOi and ThinQ are designed to take advantage of LG’s DeepThinQ deep learning technology, delivering “both emotional interaction and innovative convenience.”
VanderWaal also announced that LG is developing its own open AI development platform, DeepThinQ 1.0. He says the new platform will enhance efforts to speed up the release of new products equipped with the latest technology across LG’s business units. The platform will enable LG to integrate AI into a wider range of products, enabling LG product developers to apply deep learning to future products from mobile devices to home appliances.
DeepThinQ 1.0 AI functions include voice, video and sensor recognition as well as spatial recognition and human body detection, developed and refined through analysis of LG user habits over time. It supports a variety of operating platforms such as Android, Linux and webOS.
LG says products developed on the DeepThinQ platform will become smarter over time through the utilization of cloud servers. The goal is for their products to understand not only their external environments but also the behavioral patterns of their customers. For example in the car, LG’s cabin monitoring technology learns the driver’s facial expressions and gestures and recognizes the moment the driver starts to get drowsy. In the future ThinQ will be able to automatically adjust the music, lighting or climate inside the car by learning about the passengers who most often occupy the car.
The connected TV
LG’s TVs are also getting smarter as it adds nine new 4K LG AI OLED TVs in sizes ranging from 55 to 77-inches. Features on the new sets include LG ThinQ artificial intelligence, the Alpha 9 intelligent processor and Full-Array Local Dimming (FALD) backlighting.
ThinQ artificial intelligence enables the implementation of hundreds of voice requests utilizing LG’s webOS, as well as third-party AI services. Integrated into the sets is Google Assistant and deep learning technology which allows viewers to use voice commands to control TV functions, search for content over-the-air or on various streaming partners, or control other connected IoT devices in the network. The new TVs also make switching between content options, including broadcast TV, streaming services and external devices, easier and faster.
LG is also promising a better OLED picture with its Alpha 9 intelligent processor (LG’s 2018 Super UHD lineup is powered by LG’s Alpha 7) that enhances image rendering and provides more accurate color from virtually any viewing angle. All 2018 LG OLED and LG Super UHD AI TVs will feature 4K Cinema HDR, enabling the support of all major HDR formats, including Dolby Vision, newly added Advanced HDR by Technicolor, Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) and HDR10, as well as enhanced processing with HLG Pro and HDR 10 Pro.
Cartt.ca consumer electronics editor John Bugailiskis is in Las Vegas this week covering the Consumer Electronics Show.
