LG Electronics to launch ThinQ Claw AI agent by year-end

Tech briefing held Friday at IFA 2026

Chat via KakaoTalk, Telegram; agent learns routines and makes proactive suggestions

Beta testing through year-end after proof-of-concept phase

E-commerce partnerships planned; AI to suggest grocery purchases

Some Samsung Electronics appliances included in connectivity range

Security maintained through LG Shield; privacy protections in place

No Beom-jun, executive vice president of LG Electronics' HS AI Home Solution Business Development, explains the newly unveiled ThinQ Claw at a tech briefing held at the LG Electronics booth at IFA 2026 in Berlin on Friday (local time). [LG Electronics]

Imagine sending a message on KakaoTalk during your evening commute to let LG Electronics' ThinQ Claw know you are on your way home. The AI agent calculates your estimated arrival time and asks whether you would like it to adjust the indoor temperature and air quality — then acts on your answer.

LG Electronics unveiled ThinQ Claw at IFA 2026, Europe's largest consumer electronics trade show, presenting it as a major step forward from its existing AI home hub, ThinQ On. The new agent incorporates large language model capabilities and can communicate through external apps such as KakaoTalk and Telegram. It learns a user's daily routines and proactively suggests actions — from running appliances to activating services — before being asked.

"ThinQ Claw is currently at the proof-of-concept stage," No Beom-jun, executive vice president of LG Electronics' HS AI Home Solution Business Development, said at a tech briefing held at the company's IFA 2026 booth on Friday (local time). "We plan to conduct closed beta testing through the end of the year before an official launch within this year."

After its domestic launch, LG Electronics is preparing to roll out the service in select markets including the United States and Europe. In Europe, where energy consumption is a particularly sensitive issue, the company expects strong customer interest in energy-saving features such as detecting wasteful energy use while residents are away and analyzing occupancy patterns. LG Electronics also noted that advances in AI have accelerated the pace at which new languages can be added to the platform.

ThinQ Claw supports remote control and can sync with external systems such as Google Calendar. If a child's school vacation is added to the calendar, for instance, the agent adjusts daytime cooling accordingly. Adding a vacation schedule prompts it to switch appliances to power-saving mode and activate a vacant-home protection mode.

"By connecting with external services like KakaoTalk, we want to create an environment where users can experience AI naturally in their everyday lives," No said. "We are thinking hard about how connecting spaces, appliances and people can genuinely improve daily life, and we are trying various approaches." The strategy, he added, is to achieve what LG Electronics calls a "Zero Labor Home."

LG Electronics combines its AI home hub ThinQ On with the action-oriented AI agent ThinQ Claw to deliver an enhanced AI home experience. [The Herald Business]

While ThinQ Claw proactively suggests actions to users, it does not carry them out on its own. The system employs a "Human in the Loop" approach, continuously seeking user confirmation before executing decisions. LG Electronics said this human oversight is also essential for security purposes. Users who prefer not to be asked repeatedly about routine tasks can instruct the agent to proceed without prompting.

LG Electronics is also exploring e-commerce platform partnerships through ThinQ Claw. If a user mentions a dish they want to cook but lacks the necessary ingredients, the agent could suggest purchasing them through a relevant e-commerce platform. The company said it is looking for business models that allow it to share its ecosystem with partners.

To accelerate ecosystem expansion, LG Electronics has decided to connect appliances from other manufacturers as well. "ThinQ On, which launched last year ahead of ThinQ Claw, is built on the connectivity platform of Athom, a Dutch company LG Electronics acquired two and a half years ago," No said. "Appliances connected through that platform fall within the scope of the ThinQ Claw agent." He added that some Samsung Electronics appliances are also compatible through the Home Connectivity Alliance.

Security, however, is just as important to consumers as the service itself. As the service becomes more sophisticated through personalized data, LG Electronics said it is paying close attention to security.

"Through our LG Shield security program, we aim to protect customer privacy as much as possible while using personalized data only in ways that are necessary," No said. "We intend to analyze usage patterns and preferences from the data we collect from customers in a way that cannot be matched one-to-one with individual personal information."

jeongwan@heraldcorp.com