Xiaomi will join hands with Ikea – even as their voice assistant fails in public again

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun’s presentation of the company’s virtual assistant Xiao Ai on Wednesday was described by some as a train wreck.

“What can you do?” Lei asked Xiao Ai.

“I’m still too young, this question is too hard,” the AI voice assistant said, speaking through a tiny Bluetooth speaker.

“Xiao Ai, what is 125 plus 357 plus 567?” Lei asked again. Xiao Ai kept silent.

“Xiao Ai, do you make mistakes every time there’s a demonstration?” asked Lei, laughing after the device failed to deliver correct answers to an audience gathered at the MIDC Xiaomi AIoT conference in Beijing.

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun at the AIoT Developer Conference in Beijing / Photo credit: Xiaomi

Despite not dazzling the audience, Xiao Ai made a pretty good deal for itself that day. The voice assistant will be able to control Ikea’s smart devices like lamps, under a new strategic cooperation deal with the Swedish furniture maker.

Wait, what? Ikea has smart devices? The trendy furniture seller launched its own connected devices in March 2017 under the name Trådfri, including lights and sensors. (We just hope that connecting them is not as painful as assembling its furniture.)

Despite its ambitions, Ikea does seem to be lagging behind in the tech department. For one thing, the company still doesn’t offer online purchasing in China except in Shanghai. This is a capital offense for a brand in a country where you can get everything delivered to your door, from live crabs to construction materials.

“We have expertise in home furniture and we hope to learn technology from Xiaomi,” Anna Pawlak Kuliga, chief executive of Ikea China, told South China Morning Post.

Xiaomi’s internet-of-things platform Mi Home already supports 2,000 devices, while the company has sold 132 million IoT devices. Since this year, its IoT system has been compatible with Google Assistant.