Under chandeliers meant to evoke permanence and luxury, Samsung Electronics executives convened at the Wynn hotel in Las Vegas for a panel discussion entitled “In Tech We Trust?” The question mark seemed purposeful. While CES was bustling with spectacle outside, with robots serving coffee and AI avatars promoting skincare products, the conversation within the ballroom was notably sober.
This year, Samsung didn’t make a louder AI pitch. AI is more subdued. The company’s strategy, according to Simon Sung, is intelligence that “blends into the background.” No celebrity chatbot on its own. No grandiose demonstrations designed to surpass Google or OpenAI. Rather, Samsung is integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into its Galaxy smartphones, televisions, refrigerators, and washing machines, integrating it into everyday life so seamlessly that consumers might not even notice it.
| Company | Samsung Electronics |
|---|---|
| CEO (Europe) | Simon Sung |
| Security Platform | Samsung Knox / Knox Matrix |
| AI Strategy | On-device AI + selective cloud integration |
| 2025 Q4 Outlook | Profit surge tied to AI-driven chip demand |
| CES 2026 Session | “In Tech We Trust? Rethinking Security & Privacy in the AI Age” |
| Official Website | https://www.samsung.com |
This nuance may be Samsung’s greatest asset or its greatest vulnerability.
A refrigerator in a demonstration kitchen at a CES booth earlier this year suggested recipes based on what was in it, and a nearby TV changed the picture settings according to viewing preferences and ambient light. The exchanges went smoothly and were hardly noticeable. And maybe that’s the point. Samsung doesn’t want AI to seem like a switchable feature. It wants it to have the same feel as electricity—present, presumed, and undetectable.
However, invisibility makes trust more difficult. With a strong focus on “Galaxy AI,” the Galaxy S24 lineup includes live call translation, text tone rewriting, and image editing features that allow users to swipe away unwanted objects. While some features use cloud partners like Google, others operate directly on the device. According to Samsung, users have more control over where their data is sent thanks to this hybrid model. The business seems to be attempting to distance itself from the “black box” anxieties surrounding generative AI.
Executives emphasized what they refer to as “trust-by-design” at the CES forum. They emphasized Knox Matrix, which enables device authentication within a home ecosystem, and Samsung Knox, the company’s security platform. TVs are protected by phones. Appliances checking one another. In addition to being technically impressive, it sounds comforting.
Consumers are now cautious, though. According to surveys, people’s trust in AI is still brittle, especially when it comes to personal data. It’s difficult to ignore the fact that convenience frequently triumphs over prudence. One of the panelists in Las Vegas, Amy Webb, noted that people hardly ever purchase gadgets just because they believe in them. They purchase them due to their utility.
Samsung is also placing a lot of money on usefulness. Investors appear to be feeling upbeat. The demand for AI-related memory chips has contributed to the company’s predicted notable profit growth. Behind the scenes, Samsung provides the infrastructure that drives AI models all over the world in addition to selling consumer electronics. Complexity is increased by this dual role, which involves both selling AI-enabled devices and enabling AI at scale. The business is making the engine and operating the vehicle.
However, a delicate balance is emerging. The potential for abuse increases when AI functions on phones, TVs, and household appliances all at once. One issue is a compromised smartphone. Another is a weakened ecosystem. Samsung maintains that on-device processing minimizes exposure by keeping a large portion of the sensitive data local. Average users may not even be aware of where the computation takes place, let alone understand it.
Live translation features were enthusiastically received by retail employees in London earlier this year. Visitors adored the concept. Students found it appealing. However, queries soon arose: Does it have a call recording feature? Where is it kept? Does anyone see it? The responses were sometimes ambiguous and frequently technical.
As this develops, it seems that Samsung’s AI strategy isn’t about impressing customers. Convincing them that nothing hazardous is taking place behind the scenes is the goal.
Apple Inc. and Samsung have long been rivals in terms of ecosystem coherence and hardware polish. It feels like a philosophical contest now. With a focus on on-device processing and stringent data policies, Apple frequently frames privacy as a marketing differentiator. Samsung takes a more hybrid approach, promoting its own Gauss models while collaborating closely with Google. It talks about interoperability and flexibility.
The ecosystem may be strengthened by this openness. It might also make accountability more difficult.
According to executives at Samsung, engineers, designers, and marketers are beginning to understand AI as a shared layer rather than a stand-alone feature. That change in organization might be very important. Consistency is necessary to embed AI everywhere. An exposed dataset or an ambiguous permission toggle could be the single mistake that destroys years of trust-building.
The geopolitical context is another. Industry discussions have raised concerns about how Chinese smartphone companies handle AI data, with some executives tactfully portraying Samsung as a safer substitute. In this situation, trust becomes not only technical but also national and even ideological.
However, consumers frequently use a more straightforward calculus. Is the translation on the phone accurate? Does the refrigerator idea seem useful to you? How long does the battery last? For many, small, repeatable interactions are the foundation of trust. A gadget acting in a predictable manner. An update that arrives on schedule. maintaining a security pledge.
Samsung has matched industry leaders by promising seven years of software and security updates for its most recent Galaxy devices. That move seems realistic rather than ostentatious. It is a sign of longevity. dependability.
However, trust takes time to develop and quickly erodes. Customers may feel both relieved and uneasy as AI becomes less obvious—predicting needs, changing settings, and rewriting messages before users consciously ask for it. It feels good to be convenient. Giving up control doesn’t.
Therefore, Samsung’s AI strategy goes beyond just delivering 800 million AI-enabled gadgets. Convincing users that invisible intelligence can be both beneficial and secure is the goal. that habits aren’t being surreptitiously profiled by the refrigerator suggesting dinner. that voices are not being archived by the phone when it is translating a call.
Whether blending in with the background will reduce or increase anxiety is still up for debate.
The panel in the Wynn ballroom came to the conclusion that meaningful user control, predictability, and transparency are essential for fostering long-term trust. In the midst of CES’s typical bluster, the wording sounded almost humble. Maybe that’s deliberate.
Samsung has no intention of using spectacle to impress the audience. It aims to normalize artificial intelligence. And that might be the most audacious move of all in 2026.
