Smart kitchen into the next outlet

Starting in the living room, the smart home wars marked by the Internet TV battle, there is now a new battlefield - vendors are fighting for the right to speak in the kitchen.

At the just-concluded 2016 China Household Electrical Appliances and Consumer Electronics Expo (AWE), professional kitchen appliances companies, such as the boss, Vantage, and Jiuyang, are using intelligent east wind to accelerate the expansion of other kitchen electric products; at the same time, Haier and Midea Hisense, Hisense and other integrated appliance groups have begun to make smart kitchens.

Turn refrigerators and rice cookers into an entrance to buy vegetables and buy rice, and make range hoods and microwave ovens a recipe guide. Just as dishes are colorful, the entrance of smart kitchens is actually varied, from refrigerators, range hoods, microwave ovens. To the rice cooker, anyone who can seize this entrance will have to work harder. Are you ready to give the kitchen an intelligent buzz?

"Single champion" diversification

From 2016 AWE's display, the “single champion” enterprises of domestic range hoods, stoves, soya-bean milk makers and microwave ovens are accelerating the pace of diversification and intelligence. For the first time, Boss Electric displayed its full range of kitchen appliance lineups, ranging from range hoods and cooktops, to ovens, steamers, dishwashers, water purifiers, and building exhaust hood systems; Vantage from cookers and range hoods. Machine, to the dishwasher, water purification equipment, integrated cabinets, integrated ceiling, etc.; 9 Yang from Soymilk, to range hoods, water purifiers, rice cookers, etc.; Galanz showcases G+ smart home, from smart microwave oven to oven, range hood Machines, cookers, dishwashers, etc.

Their goal is to aim at the overall smart kitchen. The boss last year exceeded 2 million sets of range hood sales for the first time, and tried to use the ROKI intelligent cooking system on high-end range hoods, with menu navigation and other functions. Boss’s electrical appliances performed well last year, with revenue of 4.54 billion yuan in 2015 and net profit of 830 million yuan, up by 26.58% and 44.57% year-on-year respectively. "If you want to recreate a boss appliance in the next few years, you will rely on the whole kitchen," said Ye Danhao, general manager of the boss's appliance brand.

Vantage is similar, in the current AWE continues to promote "mirror mirror" smart range hood, voice control. Last year, due to fluctuations in the performance of Vantage's management, Vantage recorded revenue of 3.72 billion yuan in 2015 and net profit of 200 million yuan, both declining year-on-year. After the appointment of Pan Yejiang, the new chairman of Vantage, he actively promoted the diversified and intelligent layout of Vantage. Pan Yejiang said during AWE that “the intelligentization of the kitchen appliance industry has just emerged, and it is more embodied in a single smart function, and has not yet formed a more systematic intelligence system.”

Nine Yang also did not meet the "single champion" of making soymilk. In addition to the new-generation capsule soya-bean milk maker, AWE also introduced a range of products such as range hoods. According to Li Jiaqiang, the marketing director of the kitchen appliance division of Jiuyang Kitchen, the era of smart kitchens and large open kitchens has come. The new round of real estate destocking in China will also bring prosperity to the kitchen power market, so we must seize the opportunity. Last year, Jiuyang's performance was also good, operating income was 7.067 billion yuan, an increase of 18.89%; net profit of 610 million yuan, an increase of 15.1%. Han Yang, the deputy chief executive of Jiuyang, said that in 2016, Jiuyang will speed up the Internet and intelligent transformation.

Grab the "kitchen scene"

"Professional contestants" must expand themselves through diversification and intelligence, because Haier, Midea, Hisense, and other multi-billion-dollar comprehensive household appliance enterprise groups have accelerated their overall smart kitchen layout. Boss, Samsung and other multinational giants are also觊觎 Smart kitchen business opportunities.

With the improvement of people’s living standards, the kitchen is no longer the cramped space full of fumes and heat, but gradually moves toward an open, social space, and even becomes a place where family and friends exchange emotions. In addition, it is closely related to diet and nutrition. “Smart kitchen” is considered as a sticky application scenario.

Haier showcased a smart kitchen refrigerator with a 21.6-inch screen at this year's AWE. Liao Xin, chief operating officer of Haier Icy Industry Ecology Circle, said that through technology such as face recognition, voice recognition, and image recognition, Xinchu can assist in food management and family members exchange. It can also purchase ingredients online and has intelligent recipe functions. Can listen to music and watch videos.

According to Liao Xin, Xin Chuan has 370,000 active fans, 75% of them are daily active users, and the volume of orders has increased by 35%. Haier cooperated with Jinlong Fish, JDB, Uni-President, COFCO, Gujing Distillery, Mengniu and Kunlun Mountain to launch a “Lightning Purchase” kitchen shopping platform on smart refrigerators. "Haier uses the refrigerator as an entrance to the kitchen economy to create a smart kitchen alliance."

Midea is also building a "Smart Nutrition Solution" consisting of smart refrigerators, smart cooking appliances, and more. According to Hu Ziqiang, chief technology officer of Midea Group, Midea Smart Refrigerator can manage more than 500 kinds of foods through image recognition and other technologies to identify its freshness and preservation date; smart rice cookers, cooking machines, smart microwave ovens, smart ovens, etc. Cooking pots together; smart stoves can be linked with smart cigarettes; in the future, they will be connected with wearable devices, combined with the user's body and diet data, to provide nutrition and health programs. At present, the United States has begun cooperation with some professional medical institutions.

At this year's AWE, Midea launched the IH rice cookers at the same time, and also displayed intelligent system products, including rice cookers, electric pressure cookers, soya-bean milk makers, juice makers, bread makers, and cooking machines. All of them use cloud intelligent technology. At the same time, it links the rice ecological chain and installs the “beauty spoon app” on the mobile phone so that it can be easily controlled. Midea also started to bridge the channels between users and rice production companies to construct a cloud intelligent rice industry chain. In the future, rice cookers will become a platform for buying rice.

"After the living room scene, the kitchen scene will be the next outlet," said Liao Xin.