Samsung’s virtual assistant ‘Bixby’ reported to be an important part of the Galaxy S8

Artificial intelligence is on the verge of entering almost every aspect of our digital lives, and one of the ways it is already doing so is via virtual assistants. Samsung is reportedly working hard on its own solution, and an exclusive report from SamMobile is sheding some light on the situation…

Following the acquisition of Viv Labs earlier this year, the Korean giant made it clear that a revamped AI companion would make its way to its forthcoming devices, and the Galaxy S8 is seemingly going to be the debuting platform. As per SamMobile, in fact, Bixby (the assistant’s rumored name) will be baked into “almost all the native apps” that come preinstalled with the device.

Unlike Samsung’s current solution, S-Voice, Bixby won’t just be decidedly more advanced and capable, but also fully integrated with the device’s overall software, in a way reminiscent of Google‘s Assistant and Apple‘s Siri. “For example, it might come in handy inside the Gallery app, where you can ask Bixby to show you pictures and videos that satisfy particular criteria,” reads the report.

To better give an idea of cohesion and thoroughness to its often-criticized software, Samsung will also reportedly give its apps’ UI a graphic revamp, so to make them look more consistent and part of a unified system where Bixby swiftly works as the underlying connective tissue.

Considering just how important the Galaxy S8 will be for Samsung — taking the infamous Note 7‘s fiasco into account — we certainly believe that whatever’s being done may end up being of massive importance for the firm, likely way beyond the just the S8 itself; and with Google’s hardware invasion, it’ll be interesting to see how things ultimately pan out.