Samsung and Google are not only rivals but also partners in many fields. For instance, Samsung makes Google’s Tensor chips. Apart from this, the two cooperate in other spheres as well. For instance, today, Samsung announced that it is expanding its partnership with Google to make smart homes more interoperable. The program will allow Samsung Galaxy phone and tablet owners to use Matter-compatible smart home devices on SmartThings and Google Home. This will give simple users more choices over how they control and purchase smart home appliances.
“As the largest Android developer, Samsung values its strong partnership with Google. Providing users with greater flexibility through this new multi-admin feature is a natural progression in our evolution as partners, allowing us to better support our massive existing and potential user base with both Samsung and Google products,” said Jaeyeon Jung, Corporate Vice President and Head of SmartThings, Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics. “Both SmartThings and Google are committed to user choice and giving consumers the power to control their own devices. This collaboration furthers that commitment by enhancing the user experience and promoting transparency between ecosystems.”
Samsung said if users have smart home devices using either Google Home or SmartThings, now, they can import all of their devices into both apps. Moreover, now, they will need to use only one of them. Google recently announced an update to Google Home that will bring Matter support. The update will arrive later this year.
Matthew McCullough, vice president of product management for Android developers at Google, said:
“With the launch of Matter, we understand there will be new expectations regarding smart home connectivity. We are proud to partner with Samsung Electronics to offer new and existing smart home users their first glimpse into the future of the smart home and the ease of use that comes with it.”
The Matter smart home standard will soon be supported by most major smart home products, enabling cross-brand interoperability.
In October, the Connectivity Standards Alliance and its members, including Apple, Google, Amazon, Samsung, and other smart home manufacturers, announced the Matter 1.0 standard for smart home accessories.
