For decades, the battle between Samsung and LG took place in your kitchen and laundry room. They fought over who had the smartest refrigerator, the quietest washing machine, or the sleekest air conditioner.
But the rivalry just breached a massive new frontier. They aren’t just trying to sell you the appliances anymore—they want to build the entire house.
With the rise of “workcations” and people looking for weekend getaways, the modular housing market is absolutely exploding. It’s projected to hit a massive 4.4 trillion won (around $3.2 billion USD) by 2030. Now, Korea’s tech titans are racing to drop fully built, AI-powered smart homes straight onto your empty plot of land.
LG’s Play: The Affordably Luxury “Smart Cottage”
LG struck first with its LG Smart Cottage, a modular home packed to the brim with their premium appliances and high-tech heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
Recognizing that cost is the biggest barrier for people wanting a second home, LG just changed the game. They launched the MONO Core 27, a 27-square-meter (about 290 sq. ft.) open-plan, single-story layout featuring a living room, bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom.
The kicker? It costs 100 million won (roughly $72,000 USD)—slashing the price of their previous model exactly in half. It’s essentially a plug-and-play designer tiny home backed by one of the biggest tech brands on earth.
Samsung Fires Back: The Factory-Integrated AI Home
Not one to be outdone, Samsung just announced its official entry into the market, partnering with wooden modular housing specialist Gongganjegaeso to launch the Samsung AI Modular Home.
While LG is focusing on lowering the price barrier, Samsung is flexing its SmartThings ecosystem ecosystem.
When you order a Samsung modular home, over 20 smart devices—including heat pump boilers, refrigerators, TVs, smart lighting, and security cameras—arrive pre-installed and pre-registered directly from the factory floor. You don’t have to spend days setting up Wi-Fi, pairing devices, or hiring installers. You just turn the key, and your entire house is alive and connected.
Samsung has opened massive showrooms in South Korea ranging from tiny-home scale up to a sprawling 330-square-meter luxury layout, and they are already planning to scale this tech up to four-story apartment buildings.
The Big Picture: Why You Should Care
We are moving past the era of the “smart appliance” and entering the era of the “native smart home.” Instead of buying a house and trying to make it smart with aftermarket gadgets, tech companies are building homes from scratch where the walls, the air, the security, and the appliances act as a single, unified machine