CES 2022: From smart home to connected mobility

2021 was a hectic year for LG. It was initially thought that the company would surprise people with a mobile phone that, instead of folding, would roll. However, in April 2021 the company confirmed that it would leave the mobile phone sector and said that it would steer its focus and resources to other technology sectors on the rise. So, where the South Korean company is heading right now? Daniel Aguilar, Communication Director at LG Electronics México, says that the firm is one of the few companies that reveals its mid-term and long-term vision, which has to do with the mobility of the users. 'We are already very well positioned in people's homes, we already have our products there. The question is: how are we going to accompany them out of their homes?' he says. He also adds that a manifestation of this vision is the car concept presented in CES 2022, LG OMNIPOD, which seeks to remove the difference between home and car using the artificial intelligence platform ThinQ. With the platform, the vehicle can recognize people and identify the person that will get in, answer to different kinds of requirements from users through its digital assistant, like opening up a real-time video of the road or changing a reservation, and resuming the playback of the content that was watched in the home. 'The diversification that we are looking for goes in the direction of mobility and what we present as a concept car is nothing more than our medium-term vision of what we imagine so that users leave their homes and move to any place without losing this relationship with their home and with all its benefits', Aguilar emphasizes. He also adds that one of the other big intentions of the company is to strengthen technologies that were favored by the consumers within the last two years, from all that is related to white goods to smart televisions. 'The third quarter of last year was the best in sales in history [of LG], and it was the white line division that sold the most. This has been pushing the company hard', he underlines. Regarding the displays, Aguilar says that the company seeks to scale up the OLED technology and get it involved in the competition in a much more serious way. The 2022 C2 series will contribute to this goal, starting from 42-inch models and reaching 83-inch ones, in addition to retaining all of the other benefits of large-format Smart TVs, like the ones dedicated to games and that focuses on audio. The ThinQ platform will continue to be 'the bridge' of connection and link between different LG products, the director says, which brings another challenge too: 'This year's main challenge is that all people, regardless of their experience in technology, can use artificial intelligence without having a hard time, which will also be a great differentiator so that they prefer us over other brands'. In the CES 2022, the South Korean brand drew attention also with its monitors focused on people that work from home (DualUP), indoor gardening devices (tiiun), more home appliances, and the consolidation of its gaming gear line (UltraGear). In other words, the company continues to reinforce its indoor product lines, making it clear also that its intention is in the mobility area. We will have to wait and see how the line between these two sections fades away.