Samsung Electronics confirmed it updated tools covering its Bixby voice assistant and made revisions to its SmartThings IoT ecosystem, in a bid to help developers build, launch and scale their products.

“The progress made to Bixby and SmartThings opens a new chapter where third-party products and services can be integrated to the artificial intelligence and IoT platforms at scale,” DJ Koh, president and CEO of Samsung’s IT & Mobile Communications Division, said in a statement.

Reports earlier this week had tipped the vendor to be preparing changes to enable developers to access Bixby, as it seeks to step up its challenge to rivals Amazon Alexa, Apple’s Siri and Google Assistant.

Samsung revealed the updates at its annual developer conference, where it also took the wraps off a new flexible display technology.

“The foldable display lays the foundation for a new kind of mobile experience. We are excited to work with developers on this new platform to create new value for our customers,” Koh added.

Bixby
Samsung launched the Bixby Developer Studio “to bring a more conversational, personal and useful intelligent assistant experience to more consumers” by helping developers “infuse intelligence into more services and devices.”

Developers will be able to more easily create Bixby Capsules, features or services created for the voice assistant, and make them accessible to consumers in the Bixby Marketplace.

They can also tailor the Capsules to other consumer electronics products manufactured by Samsung, including TVs and home appliances.

SmartThings
Samsung updated its SmartThings Developer Workspace to make it easier for developers to connect their devices and services to its IoT ecosystem via the SmartThings app.

The enhanced tools include SmartThings Cloud Connector, Device Kit and Hub Connector. There is also a new Works with SmartThings certification programme to give developers access to SmartThings experts and resources.