Samsung Bespoke AI refrigerator update failure
Some owners of Samsung Bespoke AI refrigerators in South Korea were left with fridges that shut off & stopped responding after installing a software update through SmartThings, Samsung's smart home platform, on September 22, 2026.[1][2][3][4][5] Samsung said software intended for internal testing had been mistakenly distributed to some general customers.[6][2]
Samsung halted the update, promised free repairs & set a recovery target of September 24, the day the Chuseok holiday begins.[7][6][2] It was also reviewing whether to compensate owners for spoiled food.[7][2]
Refrigerators shut off after SmartThings update
[edit | edit source]Posts from owners whose refrigerators stopped working after they installed the update through SmartThings began appearing on Samsung Members, the company's online community, on Tuesday, September 22.[2][6] The South Korean newspaper Seoul Shinmun reported dozens of such posts between that afternoon & the morning of September 23.[8]
The South Korean news site Star News reported that the interior LED lights went out, the panel screen stayed fixed for hours on a message telling the owner to check the SmartThings app during the update, & the SmartThings app showed the refrigerator as offline.[9] ZDNet Korea, a Seoul-based news site, quoted one owner who said that after the update the automatic door-opening function stopped working, cold air escaped, & the interior lights went off; ZDNet Korea also quoted an owner who said that deleting the refrigerator from SmartThings & registering it again did not restore normal operation.[10] Yonhap News Agency reported a string of cases in which unplugging the refrigerator & reconnecting it, or switching the circuit breaker off & on, did not fix the problem.[7]
Star News reported that some owners said they installed the update without concern because it listed its contents as simple items such as 코드 안정화 (code stabilization).[9]
Samsung's response
[edit | edit source]Samsung posted a notice titled 냉장고 소프트웨어 오류 관련 안내 (9/23) (Notice regarding refrigerator software error) on Samsung Members at 11:07 a.m. on September 23, 2026, from a moderator account.[4] Korea JoongAng Daily reported that the notice came after users had reported problems throughout the night.[2] Android Authority, an Android news and review site, quoted the notice's opening lines in English:[4][11]
Yesterday (9/22), an error occurred during the testing process for a Samsung refrigerator software update. Abnormal symptoms have been observed in the refrigerator power and screen of some customers. We are currently taking emergency measures as a top priority through Samsung Electronics Service Centers.
The notice directed affected owners to Samsung's service center at 1588-3366.[4] South Korean broadcaster SBS reported that Samsung also asked owners to book an engineer's on-site visit, because an in-person inspection was needed, & to move stored food into ice boxes.[1]
Samsung said the failures were not caused by a defect in the refrigerators themselves or by a systemwide outage of the SmartThings platform.[2] ZDNet Korea reported that the software, still at the internal testing stage, had been distributed outside the company because of a system error.[10] The South Korean news agency Newspim reported that Samsung stopped the rollout immediately after recognizing the error, but that some refrigerators which had already run the update developed functional errors.[12]
Samsung formed an emergency response team on September 23 to begin repairs.[2][6] It said it would identify affected customers from their update history & individually contact those who had not yet requested service.[13][2] ZDNet Korea reported that finishing every repair could take longer than the September 24 target because of factors such as customers not being home.[10]
Bespoke AI 4-Door refrigerators released since 2024
[edit | edit source]Most of the refrigerators reported as failing belong to Samsung's Bespoke AI 4-Door series released since 2024, according to SBS.[1] Many of the cases posted to Samsung Members involved the RM70F & RM80F models; as of September 23, Samsung was still working to determine exactly which models were affected.[2]
Repair delays during Chuseok
[edit | edit source]Star News reported that owners who contacted Samsung's service center were told the earliest available visit date was October 1.[9] Seoul Shinmun quoted one owner who said a Samsung emergency counselor had told them a visit was not possible until October 7.[8] Daily Today, a Seoul-based online newspaper, reported other owners whose visits were scheduled for September 28, September 29, or early October.[14] SBS reported that the on-site repair booking system also suffered access disruptions.[1]
Seoul Shinmun reported that Samsung service centers would be closed on September 24 & 25, but that contact-center counselors & field service engineers would work on emergency duty through the holiday & make emergency visits for urgent repairs such as refrigerator freezing or cooling failures.[8]
Spoiled food and compensation
[edit | edit source]SBS reported that some owners were getting by with temporary measures such as packing dry ice into their refrigerators.[1] The Tracker, a Seoul-based online news outlet, reported on September 23 that compensation standards for damage beyond the product itself, such as spoiled food, had not yet been set.[15] The laptop and smartphone review site Notebookcheck reported the same day that Samsung had not said how many refrigerators were affected.[5]
Background
[edit | edit source]International Business Times UK reported that Chuseok ranks among South Korea's major holidays & that, ahead of it, many families load their refrigerators with fresh ingredients & prepared food.[3] The Chuseok holiday runs from Thursday to Sunday, beginning on September 24.[2][6]
See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Lee Hyeon-yeong (2026-09-23). ""곧 명절인데" 삼성 냉장고 먹통…"알림 눌렀더니" 분통" [Samsung refrigerators stop working right before the holiday after owners tapped an update notification] (in 한국어). SBS News. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 Kim In-kyoung (2026-09-23). "Samsung refrigerator update failure leaves owners flustered, Chuseok food supplies at risk". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Anton Arandia (2026-09-24). "'Our Food Needs To Be Thrown Out': Samsung AI Fridges 'Freeze' After Update, Leaving Owners Furious". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "냉장고 소프트웨어 오류 관련 안내 (9/23)" [Notice regarding refrigerator software error (9/23)] (in 한국어). Samsung Electronics, Samsung Members. 2026-09-23. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Anubhav Sharma (2026-09-23). ""The refrigerator is dead": Samsung's AI fridges shut down after update, causes outrage". Notebookcheck. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Kim Yeo-jin (2026-09-23). "Samsung to Cover All Repair Costs After Refrigerator Failures". Seoul Economic Daily. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Kang Tae-woo (2026-09-23). "추석 앞두고 삼성전자 냉장고 잇단 '먹통'…"긴급 복구 중"" [Samsung Electronics refrigerators stop working one after another ahead of Chuseok; "emergency recovery under way"] (in 한국어). Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Lee Jung-su (2026-09-23). ""추석 어쩌라고" 삼성전자 냉장고 '먹통 사태' 일파만파… 업데이트 눌렀다가 '단체 봉변'" [Samsung refrigerator failures spread after owners pressed update] (in 한국어). Seoul Shinmun. Retrieved 2026-09-24 – via Daum.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Kim Hye-rim (2026-09-23). "삼성전자 냉장고, 작동 오류 수십건 발생...삼성전자 서비스 긴급 조치 나서" [Dozens of Samsung refrigerator malfunctions; Samsung Electronics Service takes emergency measures] (in 한국어). Star News. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Jin Un-yong (2026-09-23). "삼성전자, 냉장고 '먹통 사태'에 스마트싱스 업데이트 즉각 중단" [Samsung Electronics immediately halts SmartThings update over refrigerator failures] (in 한국어). ZDNet Korea. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Hadlee Simons (2026-09-23). "Samsung accidentally freezes its smart fridges with a software update". Android Authority. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ Lee Seung-woo (2026-09-23). "삼성 냉장고 먹통, 업데이트 테스트 오류가 원인..."추석 기간 불편 최소화 노력"" [Samsung refrigerator failures caused by update test error; company says it is working to minimize inconvenience during Chuseok] (in 한국어). Newspim. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ Koo A-mo (2026-09-23). "삼성 냉장고 업데이트 후 '먹통'… 삼성 "추석 연휴에도 방문 수리"" [Samsung refrigerators stop working after update; Samsung says it will make repair visits during the Chuseok holiday] (in 한국어). Chosun Ilbo. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ Shin Hyun-seung (2026-09-23). "삼성전자 냉장고 SW 오배포…식품 변질 보상은 '검토 중'" [Samsung Electronics refrigerator software distributed in error; compensation for spoiled food under review] (in 한국어). Daily Today. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
- ↑ Jang Jin (2026-09-23). "삼성 냉장고 SW 오배포 후폭풍…'24일 복구' 목표에도 현장 AS 혼선" [Fallout from Samsung refrigerator software distributed in error; on-site service confusion despite September 24 recovery target] (in 한국어). The Tracker. Retrieved 2026-09-24.