Samsung Electronics and Google Cloud today announced an expanded partnership to bring Google Cloud's generative AI technology to Ballie, a new home AI companion robot from Samsung. Available to consumers this Summer, Ballie will be able to engage in natural, conversational interactions to help users manage home environments, including adjusting lighting, greeting people at the door, personalizing schedules, setting reminders and more.

"Through this partnership, Samsung and Google Cloud are redefining the role of AI in the home," said Yongjae Kim, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. "By pairing Gemini's powerful multimodal reasoning with Samsung's AI capabilities in Ballie, we're leveraging the power of open collaboration to unlock a new era of personalized AI companion—one that moves with users, anticipates their needs and interacts in more dynamic and meaningful ways than ever before."Ballie will use Gemini's multimodal capabilities along with proprietary Samsung language models to process and understand a variety of inputs, including audio and voice, visual data from its camera and sensor data from its environment. This will allow it to adapt its behaviors and responses in real-time. For instance, if you're not sure what to wear to work in the morning, you can turn to Ballie for advice. Users could ask, "Hey Ballie, how do I look?" and Ballie can respond with styling recommendations, such as trying new accessories or adding a colorful shirt.

With enhanced reasoning enabled by Gemini, Ballie will be able to help users manage not only their home, but also their health and wellbeing. For example, a user could tell Ballie, "I feel tired today." Ballie could then use Gemini's grounding in Google Search to give tailored advice on how to improve their energy levels, including sharing recommendations from trusted sources on how to get more exercise, optimize their sleeping environment or monitor their sleep patterns.

This partnership announcement builds on the successful integration last year of Gemini on Google Cloud into Samsung's Galaxy S24 smartphone series. With Ballie, Samsung and Google Cloud are exploring how to bring their generative AI collaboration to a wider range of devices.

"With Gemini on Google Cloud, Samsung is demonstrating how to deploy generative AI at scale, integrating it directly into the heart of their popular products," said Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud. "This expanded partnership with Samsung underscores our commitment to delivering reliable, enterprise-grade AI that drives lasting value for our customers - and their customers."