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LG's new ThinQ washer and dryer uses AI to detect what fabrics you're cleaning

AI is invading all your appliances.

AI in a washing machine and dryer? LG's doing it. The company's new ThinQ washer and dryer will be able to detect what type of fabrics it's cleaning and drying, which helps reduce material damage by up to 15 percent, according to LG.

We're not sure how the washer and dryer is using AI to detect the fabrics. Cameras, maybe? But it sounds very interesting because doing laundry sucks and reading the detailed cleaning instructions on your clothing labels is something nobody really wants to do. Hot wash everything, right? Not if you get one of these LG washers.

With Wi-Fi, the washer uses a feature called "smart pairing" to connect to the dryer and set the right drying settings. So, in theory, your delicates will never be washed or dried the same way as your basics. Reducing the amount of damage to your clothes with smarter washing and drying settings could really help discourage participation in fast fashion. Instead of buying new clothes because they're damaged during washing or drying, these AI appliances could push us to wear our clothes longer because they'll literally last longer.

Faster washing — In addition to the fabric detection, the new washing machine comes with a "TurboWash 360" technology that uses "3D multi spray" with "5 jet nozzles" (can, we cool it with the jargon?), which can can clean triple loads faster, in up to 29 minutes.

Raymond Wong / Input
The washer will use different settings for different fabrics.Raymond Wong / Input
LG's washer sends the dryer what it knows about the wash.Raymond Wong / Input