TikTok Expands AI Age-Detection Technology Across Europe Amid Rising Regulatory Pressure 
Anthropic Appoints Former Microsoft Executive Irina Ghose to Lead India Expansion 
TSMC Shares Hit Record High as AI Chip Demand Fuels Strong Q4 Earnings 
Baidu Shares Surge After Official Launch of Advanced Ernie 5.0 AI Model 
Elon Musk Shares Bold Vision for AI, Robots, and Space at Davos 
HKEX’s Permissive IPO Rules Could Open Opportunities for Korea to Strengthen Its Position in International Listings 
South Korea Seeks Favorable U.S. Tariff Terms on Memory Chip Imports 
Memory Chip Shortage Drives Higher Gadget Prices and Weakens Global Tech Demand 
Apple China Holiday Sale Offers Discounts Up to 1,000 Yuan on Popular Devices 
Google Seeks Delay on Data-Sharing Order as It Appeals Landmark Antitrust Ruling 
Global DRAM Chip Shortage Puts Automakers Under New Cost and Supply Pressure 
Micron to Buy Powerchip Fab for $1.8 Billion, Shares Surge Nearly 10% 
Intel Stock Slides Despite Earnings Beat as Weak Q1 Outlook Raises Concerns 
Microsoft Restores Microsoft 365 Services After Widespread Outage 
Samsung could be in the process of creating its own version of a smartphone smart assistant much like “Siri.” This is made possible by the South Korean company’s acquisition of Viv, which is meant to be a more powerful version of Apple’s iconic voice activated AI. To make matters even more interesting, Viv was also created by the same trio responsible for “Siri.”
As it stands, it would appear that Viv will retain some independence from Samsung while providing the company with its services, Tech Crunch reports. This makes the possibility of the South Korean smartphone company to release its own AI assistant in the near future more likely; whether or not the name Viv will stick remains to be seen.
In any case, it’s becoming clear that AI is an integral part in enabling companies to remain competitive in the current and future industry. With Viv being touted as “Siri’s” beefier cousin, it’s only a matter of time before Apple responds accordingly if its biggest rival decides to up the ante with its own smart assistant.
The price of the acquisition is unknown at this time along with other details pertaining to the deal. However, Recode reports that all of Viv’s employees will be falling under Samsung’s umbrella courtesy of Dag Kittlaus, one of the three central figures at Viv. According to him, they believe that they made the right decision in partnering with the world’s largest smartphone maker.
“We, of course, did our own independent inquiries about this issue,” Kittlaus said. “Samsung has drastically changed in terms of how they handle acquisitions and integrations over the last three years and really gotten good.”
In a recent interview, Injong Rhee, Samsung’s mobile CTO also hinted that the feature could be making an appearance in the next generation of Galaxy devices. It would appear that the company is also thinking about integrating Viv or whatever it will be called in the future with its other products, including Television sets. Could this be part of Samsung’s foray into the “Internet of Things” market?
