Tuya Smart, a China-based global AI/IoT platform company, is expanding its business with the opening of a U.S. sales and R&D office in Silicon Valley. The company is bringing its one-stop shop solution to device manufacturers so that any standard ‘dumb’ device can be transformed into a smart one, ready for production in less than two weeks.

(Image: Tuya Smart)

Currently working with more than 10,000 customers around the world, the company is already providing smart modules, smartphone app templates, and access to the Tuya cloud, using Alibaba or Amazon AWS, to brands like Geeni, Energize, Feit Electric, Philips and TCL.

“We are very excited to help U.S. companies build IoT solutions effortlessly using our cloud, app and WiFi module,” said Alex Yang, head of the U.S. office, Tuya Smart. “We have created technology that can produce any type of smart device: from power accessories, to lighting, to your household appliances like a heater or air conditioner, to your kitchen appliances. We understand the consumer demand for smart products, and our platform enables any manufacturer to make one effortlessly.”

The ease of development saves companies significant R&D costs and speeds the products to market to meet consumer demand. The Tuya Smart process is so fast that the controlling app can be built in a few minutes, the module developed and installed in one day, and production is ready in two weeks. The Tuya Smart IoT platform is the only one that connects Amazon Echo, Google Home, Apple Homekit and Tmall on a global scale, and Tuya has the fastest response time to an app or Echo’s voice commands of any cloud platform.

The company has deep engineering roots with its founders being a part of the original Ali Cloud core team, including CEO Jerry Wang who was the first general manager of the Ali Cloud. Also part of the Tuya team (and coming from Ali Cloud) are co-founder Leo Chen, former operating director of Ali Cloud, as well as COO and head of the U.S. office, Alex Yang, who was an executive there. These founders worked on the projects that developed into Alipay, giving them extensive understanding of user experiences.

Since its founding in 2014, Tuya Smart has developed its AIoT platform and is selling its technology in devices in more than 200 countries. Although the Silicon Valley office is new, Tuya already has a datacenter in Portland, Ore., joining Tuya’s other datacenters in China and Frankfurt. The company is also working with major American retailers including Costco and Walmart, providing them with a smart product library of thousands of products. 

“Tuya Smart is transforming standard lights to AI-powered products with high efficiency, helping manufacturers reap the benefits without having to make their own investments in IoT R&D,” said Jerry Wang, CEO, Tuya Smart.

The smart lighting solutions running on the Tuya platform can work with a variety of networking modes including WiFi, Bluetooth, Bluetooth Mesh, ZigBee and more. 

“With easy-to-adopt and cost-efficient smart business solutions, traditional lighting manufacturers can transform themselves into makers of smart home appliances. We look forward to working with more companies here in the U.S. to help create more smart appliances to make lives easier for consumers,” said Wang.