After several years of silence and a few occasional appearances at CES, Samsung is bringing Ballie back into the spotlight. This spherical robot, which is as much a gadget as a home assistant, will arrive this summer—but only in South Korea and the United States. No specific date, no price (which means: very expensive), and not even a single spec sheet yet, but a promise: that of an intelligent and cute companion, capable of managing everyday life by voice, and with a smile.
A rolling ball for the connected home
For this new version, Samsung is relying on a strategic alliance with Google. Ballie now integrates Gemini, the search giant's artificial intelligence model. This allows it to understand voice commands, converse naturally, and offer visual and audio interactions thanks to its sensors and integrated projector.
Samsung explains that Ballie will be able to manage connected objects in the home, welcome visitors, adjust lighting, and project presentations onto walls. It will even be able to offer personalized suggestions for health and style. In a press release, the manufacturer specifies that Ballie will use "in-house language models" in addition to those from Google, to offer clothing or hair advice, for example.
First presented in 2020 as a simple concept, Ballie made a strong impression thanks to its futuristic tennis ball look and fun functions. Then, radio silence. It briefly resurfaced at CES 2024, before returning again at CES 2025, this time with the promise of imminent commercialization.
But caution remains in order. Samsung is accustomed to spectacular announcements followed by delays — or even abandonment. Between the stated ambitions and the market reality, there is sometimes a gulf. Ballie, as friendly as he is, has so far only been seen in a very supervised demo. No real-life testing, no truly spontaneous interaction.
The competition, however, is not sitting idly by. Amazon has launched a preliminary version of Alexa+, an evolution of its voice assistant intended to manage the home with more natural commands. But here again, the promises have not yet been fulfilled. held, with some functions like food ordering currently missing.
The economic context also complicates matters. Samsung must deal with uncertainties related to customs tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, which could influence the price and availability of the robot. We can therefore expect a cautious launch... and a rather steep price.
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