Samsung launches generative AI model made for its devices, beating Apple to the punch

Samsung Electronics on Wednesday introduced a new generative artificial intelligence model, hinting that the software will be coming to its devices soon.

Generative AI has been popularized by Microsoft-backed OpenAI and ChatGPT, which was launched last year and has sparked a race amongst the world’s technology giants to get ahead. Generative AI is underpinned by so-called large language models, which are trained on large amounts of data.

Samsung said its technology — called Samsung Gauss — is designed for AI applications on devices.

Samsung said its AI model is named after Carl Friedrich Gauss, “the legendary mathematician who established normal distribution theory, the backbone of machine learning and AI.”

The AI system has a number of features: the first, Samsung Gauss Language, is a generative language model which can help compose emails and translate content, as well as “enhance the consumer experience by enabling smarter device control when integrated into products.”

The second feature allows in-house software developers to write code quickly, while the third, Samsung Gauss Image, can generate or edit images.

“Samsung Gauss is currently used on employee productivity but will be expanded to a variety of Samsung product applications to provide new user experience in the near future,” Samsung said in a press release on Wednesday.

Samsung could be amongst the first handset makers in the world to introduce generative AI to its devices. Daniel Araujo, Samsung’s vice president of the mobile business, said on the company’s earnings call last month that generative AI technology will likely reach customers next year.

Apple, Samsung’s biggest rival in the smartphone space, is yet to announce a generative AI product of its own. Company CEO Tim Cook said last month during the Apple earnings call that the tech giant has “work going on” in generative AI, but declined to give more details.