Tencent-backed Tuya has incorporated AIGC technology into its new developer platform to help programmers write code faster. AI has been a key trend for the smart home industry when it comes to helping devices talk to each other and communicate with users better. — SCMP
As the artificial intelligence (AI) craze generated by ChatGPT continues to gather pace, the Internet of Things (IoT) industry is also embracing AI-generated content (AIGC) to improve smart home devices and product development.
ChatGPT-like technology will “create (many) new ways for interactions” between users and smart devices, and enable products like speakers to serve the needs of users better”, said Chen Liaohan, founder and president of Hangzhou-based IoT platform company Tuya Smart, at the company’s developer conference in Shenzhen on Thursday.
Tuya, the New York-listed company backed by Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings, has also incorporated AIGC technology into its new developer platform to help programmers write code faster and speed up the development process of smart devices for clients, according to Chen.
However, Chen noted that ChatGPT-like services are still in the early stages of development with many regulatory uncertainties, and so the company will only explore new opportunities that are in compliance with policy.
Tuya’s new platform, which adopts the new Matter protocol for IoT devices, aims to connect devices across various brands and standards from the likes of Apple HomeKit and Amazon Alexa, allowing them to work seamlessly together.
The rise of AIGC, the technology behind OpenAI’s chatbot service ChatGPT, has taken the tech world by storm with promises to improve productivity and the interaction between humans and machines.
AI has been a key trend for the smart home industry when it comes to helping devices talk to each other, and to learn about human habits better to provide suggestions and a personalised experience for homeowners.
The application of AI in smart devices will follow the direction of environment computing, in which home devices will be able to perceive changes in the environment and eventually make proactive decisions, Li Yiming, a director of Amazon’s cloud unit, said in a panel discussion at the conference.
Major tech companies including Amazon and Google are reportedly working to incorporate ChatGPT-like services into their home gadgets. For instance, Amazon is developing a large language model for Alexa, its household smart speaker, according to a report by Business Insider in May.
For users, AI will be able to simplify the process of setting up the automation of smart home devices, said David Lin Ta-wei, head of Google’s smart home technology in the Asia-Pacific region.
Home automation sometimes presents a steep learning curve in terms of setting up and connecting all gadgets, and with AI the user can tell the devices what to do in natural language, Lin added. – South China Morning Post
