Samsung isn't backing down when it comes to the smart home arena. In fact, the Korean maker of smartphone hardware has just cemented its position in the competition by purchasing SmartThings, a two-year-old start-up that specializes in creating an open platform for smart home devices.
Rumors of a SmartThings acquisition first surfaced last month when TechCrunch reported that Samsung was in negotiations to snap up the start-up. The rumors, however, have been confirmed as Re/code reports Thursday that Samsung is spending $200 million to acquire SmartThings.
SmartThings will relocate to Samsung's Open Innovation Center in Palo Alto, California, the company's unit centered on the development of new hardware and software. However, SmartThings founder and CEO Alex Hawkins notes that Samsung will keep its hands off SmartThings' operations and the start-up's focus on keeping its platform 100 percent open, an attractive feature that propelled SmartThings toward its current level of success, stays the same. The SmartThings platform, which is currently supported by 1,000 devices, 8,000 apps and 5,000 developers, comprises a router-like hub that allows home owners to control non-smart home devices such as light bulbs and garage doors using the SmartThings iPhone app.
"We will continue to run SmartThings the way we always have: by embracing our community of customers, developers, and device makers and championing the creation of the leading open platform for the smart home," says Hawkins in a blog post.
SmartThings started as an ultra-successful Kickstarter project in 2012 and went on to raise $15 million in funding from investors such as First Round Capital, Greylock Partners and Highland Capital.
The acquisition puts Samsung in a position to compete with Google, which acquired smart thermostat maker Nest in January and launched a certification program for compatible appliances in July, and Apple, which announced HomeKit at its developer conference in June. It's not just the smart home, though, that these technology companies are racing to own. It's the Internet of Things, or the millions of wirelessly connected devices that can communicate with one another.
A number of SmartThings customers, who were the first backers of the start-up when it was a Kickstarter project, were disappointed over the news, fearing that with Samsung executives sitting at SmartThings' board, its open platform could be compromised by Samsung's own interests.
"While I congratulate you and your team for the success, I don't know how much I can trust that it will stay 100% open," says a SmartThings backer Dan VanWinkle on Hawkins' blog post. "I have seen both sides, so I know that there is a chance that you stay in control, but the reality is, and with all due respect, you are now an employee."
Another customer, Korban Hadley, is hoping that "Samsung stays in the background" and not meddles with the operations of SmartThings.
Here is what Hawkins has to say:
"Have no fears. SmartThings = Open."
