Apart from serving as a key business platform for the smart home industry in China, the 2018 fair was praised for its multi-stream event programme. Dedicated summits invited industry executives to share insights on the future of in-house Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications, promote knowledge exchange and inspire audiences to develop business strategies.
Commenting on the success of the fair, Lucia Wong, deputy general manager of Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co Ltd, said: “The debut ‘SSHT AI + Smart Home Summit’ was the focal point of the 2018 fair. We positioned the fair as not just a marketplace but also a forward-looking, engaging and interactive meeting point in the region.”
The ‘SSHT AI + Smart Home Summit’ took place on the first day of the show with support from China Smart Home Industry Alliance (CSHIA). Guests including the China Academy of Information and Communication Technology, Alibaba, Baidu, Huawei and Microsoft gathered to deliver eight talks illustrating how the concept of smart living could be achieved by applying AI technologies.
Bill Chen, deputy director of Finance from Kuka Investment, commented “The theme of this AI forum is closely related to the market demand. The he speakers were very professional which encouraged a high-quality audience to attend. I’ve met a number of interesting new people and the participation level and engagement from the audience was good.”
Together with SIBT, the two shows featured more than 80 presentations that addressed an array of topics related to wireless connection protocols, building automation theories, energy management systems, new product launches and much more. Audiences no doubt benefited from the forums’ outlook on the next decade’s intelligent household development.
Business opportunities provided
Home security, electric curtains and sun-shading systems, home audio & video entertainment systems, wireless control applications and cloud platform services took centre stage at the three-day fair.
An increase in exhibitor numbers from home and abroad and the record-breaking total exhibiton area once again spoke for the show’s status as the premier platform for smart living technologies in China.
Key figures at a glance (together with SIBT) showed:
- Visitors: 24,835 – 7% increase year on year
- Exhibitors: 272 – 13.3% increase
- Exhibition area: 23,000 sqm – 27.8% increase
Exhibitor, Zhou Zegui, SVP of UIOT Smart home, said: “With the advent of the IoT era, the smart home industry has developed very rapidly in recent years. I believe that IoT will enter the lives of more families in the near future, creating a better and smarter life for hundreds of millions of families. Our company has participated at SSHT for five years. The fair is very professional and helps us to expand and promote our company to the wider industry.”
Wu Yongqing, director of Operations, Kuai Zhu Intelligent Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd, added: “Kuai Zhu Intelligent Technology has long been committed to the development of smart home technology. As one of the most important smart home exhibitions in China, SSHT is our first choice to present the latest products, to enhance publicity and to seek more potential partners. Participating at this exhibition also gives us a good opportunity to show visitors real-life product applications.”
Among the visitors, Yusuf Belgore, manager director, Gore Digital Integrated Resources Ltd, Nigeria, added: “I travelled all the way from Nigeria to China just to attend this fair. I was able to connect with more than 10 quality smart home product suppliers on just the first morning. I was particularly interested to find control panels, sun shading systems and switches. I have successfully placed an order for some US$50,000 (€42,757) worth of products already, and I am looking to liaising with exhibitors after the fair and expecting more on-going procurements. I believe I will return next year.”
Speaker, Wang Zhi, Smart Terminal general manager, Alibaba AI Labs, said: “I found the summit particularly appealing. Not only were we able to present our company’s innovative ideas before industry professionals, the event also allowed me to connect with other experts in the field on how the industry will evolve in the years to come. I am amazed by the number of attendees. They were very professional and some of them even came to me for discussion after the session. Overall, I am satisfied with the outcome of the seminar.”
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