How many times have you been sprung by a red sock lurking in your whites and been left with pink clothes? Or switched on the oven to cook dinner, got waylaid by another job, and ended up with burnt food? Well, there's a new generation of super-smart appliances that promise to help. The AI-powered kitchen — appliances that 'see' and 'think' for you — has well and truly landed; this year's IFA (Innovation For All) show was packed with futuristic kitchen kits touting big claims about making our lives easier.
Short of sorting your laundry for you or going to the shops to buy food, these new appliances pretty much take care of everything else. Expect ovens with built-in cameras that ensure your food is cooked to perfection and washing machines with three drums so you can get through your laundry at breakneck speed.
Sounds clever, right? But the big question is, are these genuinely genius features you’ll actually use or extra gimmicks to decode and worry about? Because don’t forget these high-tech ovens, hobs, and washing machines all come at a cost. Plus, they will add extra layers of tech to our already tech-laden lives.
The premise is pretty clear, say the appliance brands. This technology takes the guesswork out of cooking and cleaning, making everyday kitchen tasks even easier. The aim is to save you time, cut back on waste, and improve energy efficiency, which all sounds super helpful. But are smarter kitchens the way forward, or are these new appliances just a little bit bonkers and, well, a tad unnecessary?
To help you make up your mind, here are six new things appliances will be able to do in 2027 — and whether I think they’re actually worth it. (As a disclaimer, I haven’t tested any of the appliances; it's just based on my first impressions.)
1. An Oven That 'Cooks for You'
Haier's new ID Ultimate Series 6 oven has a built-in camera to see what's cooking.
What Is It?
How Does It Work?
The AI camera called Bionicook sees what food you’ve put inside, then automatically adjusts cooking time and temperature for the best results.
The main features include:
- No more guesswork: Rather than you setting the oven and hoping for the best, the AI camera analyzes what food is inside and oversees the cooking process for you
- Promises less burnt or undercooked food: The oven automatically switches off when the food is properly cooked
- Learns your cooking habits: The AI camera learns how you cook and uploads them as presets to your oven
- App-controlled: You can check if your pie is golden or your cake has risen all from your phone
- Matching hob and hood: An induction hob that moves the power to wherever you place your pans and an app-controlled hood for the ultimate smart cooking zone
Do You Need It?
If you regularly cook roasts and other dishes that need specific timings then, yes — sure. But if you’re a confident cook you probably won't need this level of intervention. The oven also needs to learn how you like certain foods cooked (for example, super crisp roasties or lightly golden Yorkshire puddings), but according to the brand that doesn't take too long.
2. A Dishwasher With 'Eyes'
Coming next year, Miele's G8C920G Vi OS230 1 fully-integrated dishwasher has a built-in camera to monitor your dirty crockery and cutlery.
What Is It?
Miele’s new top-of-the-range dishwasher, the G8C920G Vi OS230, comes with a built-in camera to monitor, wash, and dry your dirty dishes.
It will cost £3,299 and is due to be available from May 2027.
How Does It Work?
AI eyes (called Autovision) 'watch' how full the dishwasher is and detect what sort of items are inside. You stack, close the door, and the machine takes care of everything else, so all you have to do is get ready-to-put-away dishes the next morning.
The main features include:
- Sees what’s inside: The camera uses image processing and AI-based recognition to detect what’s inside the machine and how full it is
- Tweaks the cycle: After seeing what’s in the machine it adjusts the wash and dry. For example, for dirty pots, you’ll get a more intense cycle; for plastic kitchenware it will select a suitable drying temperature
- Ends hand drying: Every pot, bottle and dish is clean, dry and ready to put away
- Automatic detergent dispensing: Releases just the right amount of detergent at just the right point in the programme
- App-based convenience: Timetable your dishwasher to turn on when you want or depending how full it is with the Miele app
Do I Need It?
Busy households with large mixed loads of dirty dishes (such as lunchboxes, plastic bottles, cutlery, and crockery) will probably benefit most, especially from the drying feature. And if you’re a keen cook, the AI-adjusted wash settings might be handy for tackling greasy pots and pans. But this sort of tech does come at a price (roughly 6.5 times the average price of a dishwasher in the UK).
3. A Three-Drum Washing Machine
Three loads are better than one thanks to Haier's new multi-drum washing machine.
What Is It?
How Does It Work?
Haier’s MultiWash has three separate drums in one appliance, so you can wash different laundry loads and different fabrics at the same time. Two mini 1kg drums at the top are perfect for smaller loads like delicate fabrics and sportswear, and there's a larger 10kg drum for everyday laundry.
The main features include:
- Flexibility: You can wash three different laundry loads at the same time, including colors in the main drum and wool in the smaller one. It's rated A for energy efficiency, too
- Space-saving: Fits into a standard washing machine footprint
- Easy installation: A freestanding model that needs just one power connection and one water connection, so a simple upgrade for the machine you already have
- Clear displays: It has light-up control panels. The left drum is controlled independently, while the right display manages the upper drum and the larger drum below
- Connected experience: A dedicated app allows you to monitor and manage your laundry remotely
Do I Need It?
I really like the look (and sound) of this. Being able to wash three separate loads simultaneously (say, baby clothes, gym kit, or delicates in the mini drum and everyday clothes in the main one). Or, if you have one thing that needs washing but don't want to waste a full wash — you can just use the mini drum. It's pricey, sure, but I think it'll pay dividends in saved water bills (and sanity).
4. A Fridge That Fits an Extra Trolley-Worth of Food
Liebherr's new oversized fridge-freezers are seriously cool operators.
What Is It?
Liebherr’s XL and XXL built-in fridge-freezers allow you to store up to an extra trolley's worth of shopping. They'll be priced from £1,399 and are due to be available at the end of 2026.
How Does It Work?
The big-size fridge-freezers stretch to 194cm high (standard fridges are 178cm tall), giving you way more cooling storage.
The main features include:
- More space for more food: Max out storage so you can do bigger weekly shops (or not shop so often). The XXL fridge offers up to 100 liters of extra storage
- Switch temperature settings: VarioTemp allows the freezer compartment to switch to a fridge or cellar for complete flexibility
- Seamless silhouette: Fully integrated for a sleek, kitchen look — perfect if you don’t want a big freestanding American-style fridge-freezer
- Fresher food: Smart fresh technology to keep food in peak condition for longer
Do I Need It?
I think large households and bulk shoppers will love the extra capacity. It would be a good option if you’re renovating a smaller kitchen and want built-in appliances that store more food, too.
5. A Washing Machine That Spots the Red Sock
Haier's Vision 15 washing machine has a built-in camera to follow your laundry from beginning to end.
What Is It?
Haier's freestanding Vision 15 washing machine has a camera built into the door to understand what's happening inside the drum. It is set to launch in October 2026 and will cost £1,200.
How Does It Work?
The AI Vision Sense camera detects how many clothes are in the machine and suggests the ideal programme to optimize time, water, and energy consumption. It also flags if mixed colors are in the machine, so if there's a black or red sock in with your whites, it'll let you know. Genius.
The main features include:
- Intelligent washing: AI, advanced sensors, and algorithms work out your laundry load and learn from your washing habits for personalized garment care
- Extra eyes on your laundry: The built-in camera modifies the wash depending on what clothes it can see. It monitors excessive foam and checks if any garments have been trapped or left inside the drum
- Smartphone-style control panel: Full-color interface for a clean user experience
- Energy-efficient: A-75% energy class to help keep electricity bills down
- Matching tumble dryer: The Vision 15 tumble dryer does a 3D scan of your load and adjusts the cycle until the clothes are completely dry. The camera will alert you if there's something in the machine that may shrink with a chosen programme
Do I Need It?
If you're a busy household that does regular mixed loads, then the built-in camera is useful for catching laundry mistakes inside the drum. And if you're heavy-handed with your detergent and there's too much foam in the machine, the camera will trigger an extra rinse so you won't get soapy clothes. But if you're a couple with fewer clothes to wash or you're already super vigilant with your laundry, then maybe the extra expense isn't worth it.
6. An AI Kettle You Can Schedule
Ask your kettle to brew up with the Halo digital kettle from Morphy Richards
What Is It?
How Does It Work?
The Halo Alexa Kettle from Morphy Richards is voice-controlled and connects to the Alexa app and compatible speakers, so you can ask it to boil water, ready for your morning tea or for exactly when you arrive home each day.
The main features include:
- Hands-free boiling: You ask Alexa to boil the water without needing to operate the kettle manually
- Six cup capacity: Holds 1.5L of water for brews throughout the day
- Different temperature settings: The LED touch panel has six temperature settings for fully boiled water through to 80°C for green tea and 40°C for warm water
- Keeps the water warm: The Halo kettle automatically keeps the water warm for two-hours (not for 100°C though)
Do I Need It?
Hmmmm... if you love gadgets and you're into smart home technology, then you'll really like this. And I do quite fancy the idea of having boiled water ready and waiting in the morning. But obviously you'll still have to fill the kettle and make your own coffee...
Smart kitchen appliances that aim to take the guesswork out of cooking and cleaning are certainly on the rise. And while these high-tech pieces of kit are becoming more mainstream, they remain at the top of the price bracket, so the key is to weigh up whether the extra features are worth the extra expense.
That said, there's something to be said about the good looks of these examples, because these days, it's all about how well you can hide it — just like how specialist company Equippd managed to integrate tech into a heritage property recently.
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