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The Spoon

Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

Bespoke

Samsung Wants You to Put Generative Art on Your Refrigerator

Today Samsung launched a new line of custom refrigerator art produced by generative AI. According to Samsung, the new collection was created by Matt Jacobson, an artist who “uses computer code as his paintbrush.” Jacobson used computer algorithms to create 100 generative art prints designed for Bespoke refrigerators.

Generative art – art created using an algorithm or, more recently, with artificial intelligence – has generated lots of buzz lately as new tools like OpenAI’s DALL-E have people creating visually stunning artwork with a few lines of text. While we’ve seen many artists and companies jumping on the AI-powered art bandwagon, Samsung is definitely the first appliance brand to tap into the generative art zeitgeist.

For Samsung, the move is an interesting – if on-brand – way to tap into the latest technology trends. The Bespoke line allows customers to create custom refrigerator designs using mix-and-match panels, whether with off-the-shelf designs or personalized designs with a customer’s artwork or photos. The Bespoke line has been getting lots of promotional love from Samsung over the past year-plus, while the company has let its tech-forward Family Hub line recede into the background. The release of the new generative art collection seems to be another tacit admission by the company that while cutting-edge technology may be a fine way to enhance its design-forward lineup, making it the central focus of a refrigerator’s feature set wasn’t a winning proposition.

The collection is available for a limited time and free to download from today until February 13, 2023.

You can hear Jacobsen describe the project in the video below:

Samsung Bespoke - Generative Art by Matt Jacobson

Samsung to Debut Bespoke AI Oven at CES as Family Hub Fades Into Supporting Role

Every year, Samsung takes up more square footage on the exhibition floor than perhaps any other company at CES. Among all that booth space, the Korean consumer electronics giant usually allocates some footage to their kitchen products and, for much of the past decade, a good chunk of its kitchen product focus was on the company’s Family Hub smart fridge line.

But over the past year, Samsung has been pushing its Bespoke family into the limelight while quietly pulling back the Family Hub into more of a supporting rule. And this week at CES 2023 in Las Vegas, Bespoke is not only getting top billing again, but it will also include some product categories beyond the fridge such as its new AI-enabled smart oven.

Starting Thursday, Samsung will showcase the Bespoke AI Oven, a built-in wall oven features a ‘Sense Inside’ feature that uses AI-powered image recognition to recognize up 80 different dishes and ingredients and help avoid overcooking. Samsung claims the new feature is the first food recognition and burn detection AI algorithm to receive an AI cooking appliance verification by UL Solutions. The AI Oven also works with SmartThings Cooking and Samsung Health, which allows it to recommend meal ideas based on the user’s workout stats, diet goals, and the ingredients they have on hand.

As for why Samsung is starting to emphasize the Bespoke brand over Family Hub, my guess is they’ve had more success selling the design-forward Bespoke lineup over the tech-heavy marketing lift required for when Family Hub got top billing. While certainly open to new technology in the kitchen, a consumer’s primary focus with kitchen design and significant appliance purchases is to build an attractive and functional space. Bepoke’s mix and match design concept serves those needs well.

As for Family Hub’s future, signs are pointing to the platform following the same path as the Samsung SmartThings platform, which transitioned over time from a discrete product line to an enabling feature integrated into other products.

Did you know The Spoon is producing CES’s Food Tech Conference? Find out more here.

Forget Smart. Samsung’s Latest Fridge Focus is Creating Giant Custom Photo Walls

Who needs fridge magnets when you can create a giant photo wall with a picture of your kids, furbaby, or dream vacation getaway instead?

That’s exactly what you can do if you own a Bespoke fridge from Samsung. According to a release sent to The Spoon, owners of Bespoke fridges can now create custom fridge panels featuring a photo or artwork. The new feature can be added to a new Bespoke fridge or swapped out with a panel on an existing unit.

To create a Bespoke custom printed panel, users go to the Mybespoke website, upload a picture or artwork, edit the layout, and submit the panel for print. Each custom printed panel will set you back $250. The new custom-designed panels feature will be available later this year.

Okay, so pictures printed on your fridge isn’t exactly high-tech, but it is definitely a sign of where Samsung’s head is nowadays when it comes to their fridge lineup. It’s not like Samsung has forgotten about its Family Hub fridge line exactly, at least not yet. After all, they did announce some fairly modest improvements at CES, and you can get a Family Hub version of the Bespoke line. But it’s clear, at this point, that their primary focus seems to be their design-forward lineup with Bespoke.

All of which speaks to the state of the smart fridge market. No one has really cracked the code on figuring out how to leverage smarts to make food management truly easy. Sure, big screens are nice, as it using Alexa and auto-replenishment of grocery staples. But none of them, in our view, is doing a great job of helping us take inventory or reduce food waste without a whole lot of work on the part of the user.

We’re still waiting for that and hope someone will come up with that game-changing innovation soon. If you’ve got a big idea about that, why don’t you let us know and show it off at SKS Invent in October.