Owners of Samsung's "AI Family Hub" refrigerators in South Korea have reported that a recent software update has caused the appliances to break. The issue surfaced just before the Chuseok holiday, a period when many households stock their refrigerators for visiting family.
These AI-enabled refrigerators are designed to track fresh food inventory and suggest recipes. However, the update reportedly caused them to malfunction, leading to spoiled food. The timing of the failures has exacerbated the problem, making repairs difficult during the holiday period.
Samsung acknowledged the issue, stating that it was limited to Korea and that no overseas markets were impacted. The company explained that the problem occurred on the afternoon of September 22nd due to an error during internal testing for a refrigerator software update. Samsung stated that it immediately suspended the testing upon receiving reports and activated an emergency response protocol. Service centers are reportedly taking immediate action to address the issue.
"The issue has been limited to Korea, with no impact identified to overseas markets," a Samsung spokesperson told Ars Technica. "It occurred September 22nd afternoon due to an error during Samsung's internal testing related to a refrigerator software update. Samsung immediately suspended the testing upon receiving reports of the issue. Samsung has activated an emergency response protocol, and its service centers are taking immediate action to address this issue."