As the centerpiece of the living room, the TV is evolving into a smart platform that understands user intent and expands the viewing experience. Beyond simply playing content, TVs now enable natural conversations, provide real-time information about what’s on screen and offer personalized recommendations.
To meet these changing expectations, Samsung Electronics introduced Vision AI Companion (VAC), an integrated AI platform designed for TVs. Exclusive to Samsung TVs, VAC delivers AI-powered services that present relevant information without disrupting viewing and seamlessly connect users to related content.
In May, Samsung updated the VAC user interface and accelerated the service’s global rollout. Previously available in 38 countries including Korea, VAC has since expanded worldwide,1 with support extended to more TV models. The company plans to bring the service to additional products and markets, giving more users access to AI-enhanced screen experiences.
Samsung Newsroom spoke with Donghee Han of the Experience Planning Group, Visual Display (VD) Business to learn more about how VAC is shaping the future of TV viewing.
As AI becomes increasingly integrated into everyday life, consumers have naturally come to expect new AI-powered capabilities from their TVs. Yet questions remain about what role AI should play on TVs and which functions provide meaningful value.
“Building on Samsung TV’s longstanding technology leadership, we focused on making a wide range of AI features, content and apps easy to access, so users can enjoy them without navigating complex menus,” said Han. “Rather than simply showcasing technology, the goal was to bring together genuinely useful features that offer practical support while watching TV and make them available in one place.”
The starting point for VAC was the unique nature of TV as a device — one that differs from smartphones or PCs. “Because TV is designed primarily for viewing content on a large screen, AI interactions must be seamlessly connected to what is on screen without disrupting that experience,” he added.
When watching a movie, viewers may wonder, “Where was this film shot?” or “Who directed this?” Instead of reaching for a smartphone, they can simply ask questions about what they are watching and get answers instantly. “Conversational search allows users to resolve questions in the moment and continue exploring related content,” said Han. “It’s a fast, intuitive capability that only Samsung TVs can offer and a key differentiator.”
VAC’s greatest strength is its natural language capabilities, allowing users to find content through conversations that feel as intuitive as speaking with another person. While traditional TV voice search typically requires an exact title or predefined genre, VAC interprets both the context and intent behind a viewer’s request.
“Even without knowing the exact title, users can describe a mood, actor or plot point that comes to mind — such as ‘Find me a movie where justice is served in a satisfying way’ or ‘Find me an animated movie about K-pop stars’ — and the AI understands the context to surface the most relevant results,” Han explained. “Because entering search terms with a TV remote can be cumbersome, the ability to find something by saying what comes to mind is an innovative leap in the viewing experience.”
VAC goes beyond providing information. “Since video is at the heart of the TV experience, we designed the service so conversations don’t end with a single answer,” he said. “By presenting related videos that users can watch immediately, VAC creates a direct connection between discovery and viewing.”
Han also explained the rationale behind developing an integrated platform tailored for TV. “We believed that simply bringing existing global AI services to TV would not be enough to create a truly optimized viewing experience,” he said. “Drawing on Samsung’s extensive expertise in smart TV platforms, we built a dedicated environment where viewing, conversation, information discovery and AI-generated content come together.”
With the latest update, VAC introduces enhanced lifestyle features. Today’s Topic, for example, uses AI to summarize top news, lifestyle updates and sports highlights — eliminating the need to search for them manually.
“Today’s Topic was inspired by a simple question — what if AI could proactively find and summarize information users might be interested in?” Han said. “Beyond providing text-based information, the feature also recommends related videos worth watching.” As a result, viewers can quickly catch up on key developments and dive deeper into subjects of interest through related content.
Samsung also introduced the zero-depth user interface, designed to minimize unnecessary navigation. By displaying topic-based conversations directly on the home screen, users can explore AI features without moving between multiple screens.
“We focused on making AI features easier to access while preserving the natural flow of TV viewing,” he added.
Bringing AI services to a screen as familiar and ubiquitous as the TV presented challenges beyond the technology itself. Establishing strong policies and safeguards — particularly around copyright, privacy and data use — was a top priority.
“There was no clear roadmap for applying rapidly evolving AI technologies to the TV screen,” Han recalled. “Throughout the planning and development process, we had to make decisions and define principles ourselves.”
“There was certainly pressure to introduce new features quickly in a global AI landscape where new services emerge almost daily,” he continued. “But as a platform offered to households around the world under the Samsung name, building user trust mattered more than the speed of implementation.”
To support that goal, the team worked closely with Samsung’s legal department from the earliest stages of development, conducting a thorough review to ensure that every feature met company standards and was introduced responsibly. The result reflects not only technical innovation but also a commitment to earning user trust through robust policies and protections.
VAC focuses not only on implementing AI technology but also on integrating it naturally into the TV experience. This philosophy underpins Samsung’s vision for the future of screens. Unlike traditional smart TV services limited to predefined features and fixed interfaces, VAC is designed to adapt alongside changing user needs and market trends.
“Samsung TVs will move beyond menu-based navigation to become platforms that understand user intent and proactively connect users to relevant content,” Han explained. “By combining AI-powered conversations with the immersive experience of a large screen, everything from information discovery to content viewing can become part of a single journey.”
“TVs will continue to evolve toward a future where they better understand user intent and significantly broaden the viewing experience,” he continued. “Through VAC, we will keep enhancing both features and usability so more users can enjoy intuitive AI experiences on TV.”
Moving beyond screens that simply display content, Samsung TVs are becoming more intuitive companions. With VAC, Samsung is expanding the possibilities of smarter screen experiences by helping users discover information and content more naturally.
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