Ring has introduced a new Smart Video Search feature that allows users to search the video archive from their doorbells and other Ring cameras using keywords. The AI-powered feature, called Ring IQ, matches text to images and offers an endless number of queries to try. The Smart Video Search feature is designed to find specific items such as animals, packages, people, vehicles, and weather, as well as activities such as running and biking. The feature can differentiate between different objects and activities and jump to the specific moment in the video that matches the query.
The Smart Video Search feature uses a vision language model to match text to images and allows users to find specific moments in their video archive quickly and easily. It distinguishes between daytime and nighttime footage, different days of the week, and can even differentiate between similar objects such as a UPS driver and a USPS letter carrier. The feature also includes multiple safeguards to prevent users from searching for offensive or inappropriate content. Users must proactively enable the feature via the Ring app and can choose which cameras to activate it for.
While Ring CEO Liz Hamren had previously mentioned plans for the feature in an interview with GeekWire, Ring is not the first company to offer this type of AI video search feature. Wyze Labs, based in Kirkland, Washington, unveiled its own AI video search feature in August for customers on its Cam Unlimited plan. The Smart Video Search feature allows users to search for specific items such as a person or dog, but cannot identify specific individuals or animals by name. Ring’s Smart Video Search feature is a notable first step towards real-time AI recognition that could trigger actions such as locking doors or activating flood lights to scare away unwanted visitors.
Ring is betting that users will find the Smart Video Search feature useful for making practical and fun discoveries, such as when a package was delivered or who took the last cookie from the jar. The feature will initially be released as a public beta before being rolled out as part of a new Ring Home Premium subscription later this year. Users can search for specific objects or activities and the feature can differentiate between similar items based on the user’s query. While the feature has its limitations, such as not being able to identify specific individuals, it is a significant advancement in AI technology for home security and surveillance systems.
