ADT Buys AI Firm for $170 Million to Bolster Security Products

Security company ADT Inc. has bought AI startup Origin Wireless Inc. for $170 million in a deal that will allow it to upgrade its popular home security products with new artificial intelligence features.

Origin’s technology can distinguish between human and non-human motion, analyzing whether activity comes from, say, a person, dog or mechanical object such as a robotic vacuum. This is more sophisticated than ADT’s existing motion sensors, which can detect the presence of a moving creature or object but not classify it. Origin uses Wi-Fi signals from ordinary devices like laptops and smart light bulbs to make its determinations, meaning that ...