Last week saw the biggest annual launch of Samsung's flagship Galaxy S series – the Galaxy S24 series. With it came the very anticipated unveiling of Galaxy AI, Samsung’s latest foray into the world of Artificial Intelligence. Plenty of new features were added to the Galaxy S24 series, with the highlights being: Chat Assist, Note Assist, Call Assist, Photo Assist, and Circle to Search.
The features of Galaxy AI are nothing short of a wonder for mobile AI, and if you’ve been able to test out Galaxy AI for yourself, you’ll probably agree too. Introduced as a way to make everyday life more convenient with your smartphone, Galaxy AI is there to make sure you work smarter, not harder.
With that being said, the whole point of Galaxy AI is to enable Galaxy S24 users with immediate access to AI-assisted functions without relying on any external tools. This sets a whole new precedent for the implementation of AI in smartphones in this era, and Samsung is aiming to revolutionise the way we approach this.
Of course, with the implementation of AI comes its own set of questions. Many are always concerned about the overall ethics of the use of AI, and there are always those who wonder if AI serves the functionality it’s supposed to.
We had the chance to have a media Q&A session about Galaxy AI with Patrick Chomet, Corporate EVP Head of Products & Experiences for Samsung Electronics. He was able to shed plenty of insight into Samsung’s process of creating and implementing Galaxy AI on the Galaxy S24 series, as well as answering some of the burning questions people had about the new feature. Here’s what was asked:
Q: How did Samsung differentiate the features of Galaxy AI as something that was a gimmick or something functional?
A: Samsung tested out different Galaxy AI features that could have been implemented into the Galaxy S24 series and is the result of an ongoing effort for years. The features available now are the ones that remain the most useful and were ready in time for the [Galaxy S24 series] launch.
Q: It is stated that Galaxy AI will become a paid service at the end of 2025. What does this mean for users?
A: Whatever is part of the core experience for Galaxy AI will never become a paid service, but if it’s a value-added feature, then it could become a paid service over time.
Q: Most of the Galaxy AI features seem to be based on Google Gemini. Why choose to use Google’s programming and not develop Samsung’s own model?
A: [Samsung] wanted to provide the best user experience when using Galaxy AI, therefore it was selected based on what works best to provide that. One UI has also been trained to give the best experience with other functions developed by Samsung’s own model to give users unique experiences.
Q: Why are some features of Galaxy AI cloud-based and some hardware-level? Will we also see a performance difference between the two chipsets?
A: [We] needed to give instant results for specific tasks that are critical, which is why they are developed on a hardware level. It also works the same across both Exynos and Snapdragon because it's not based on the chipset.
Q: There are many ethical concerns when it comes to the use of AI. What has Samsung done to assure users of this?
A: The objective [of Samsung] is transparency and controllability for users. Personal data isn’t stored, and users have full control over cloud-based data. [Samsung] has also done so to the best of their ability and their due diligence with watermarks and metadata.
Q: If more and more photography is becoming AI-edited and generated, how can we tell what is “real photography” anymore?
A: Photography [by users] is intention-based. Whatever the user wants, it’s up to them to choose what to do with their photos. If they want authentic [photos] they can capture real photos, and if they want to alter [the photos] then they can use Galaxy AI.
Q: In terms of battery performance, how do we expect Galaxy AI to affect it on devices?
A: The [device] battery has been made more efficient for [Galaxy AI] features, assuring stable performance even with more Galaxy AI features enabled.
Q: What is the difference between Bixby and Galaxy AI?
A: Bixby is a voice assistant and will continue [as a feature], while Galaxy AI is AI-powered independent of Bixby. Bixby is also able to carry out Galaxy AI functions for users.
Q: What were the biggest challenges when deciding what features went into Galaxy AI?
A: Weeding out [features that were] the gimmicks. Providing ease of use for a better user experience. [Focusing] on performance for Galaxy AI, i.e. features that work well with the devices.
Q: Finally, the most anticipated question: Which older devices are going to get Galaxy AI?
A: The Galaxy S23 series, Galaxy S23 FE, Galaxy Z Fold5, Galaxy Z Flip5, and Galaxy Tablet S9 series. [Users] can expect to get [Galaxy AI] within the first half of the year. Also, expect a performance difference. [Samsung] will start with the best experience first for the Galaxy S23 series, then make their way down the range.
[This article was written in collaboration with Samsung Malaysia]