SAN JOSE, Calif.—Roku has introduced Roku Labs, a new program built on the concept that the best innovation happens when customers help shape it.
Available soon in the U.S., Roku Labs will give viewers early access to experimental, in-development apps from Roku’s engineers and innovators, letting them test new experiences, share feedback and directly influence what gets built next. Roku Labs is found directly through a tile on the Roku Home Screen.
“Our best breakthroughs have never happened in a vacuum; they start with Roku engineers building and the people watching,” said Roku senior vice president for advanced development Brian Pinkerton. “Roku Labs continues to bridge the gap between engineers and our viewers, giving millions of households a seat at the table to explore, test and shape experiences in real time. It ensures every feature that comes to our platform solves a real pain point, brings genuine delight and reinforces our commitment to streaming.”
One of the first concepts to come out of Roku Labs is Roku City Dash, an original game that takes viewers inside Roku City, past iconic buildings and unexpected surprises from outer space. Having graduated from Roku Labs, Roku City Dash is now available to viewers everywhere. At launch, four more features remain in testing inside Roku Labs. Roku Stocks allows viewers to keep an eye on their portfolio, and Roku Weather checks the forecast from their TVs.
Backdrops Studio lets viewers get more creative with custom artwork and images for their screens, and Roku Immerse enables them to set the screensaver atmosphere they want, whether that’s looking for spectacular mountain views or the desert at sunset.
Other updates are planned, including global expansion of the new Roku Home Screen with Brazil and Mexico launching in coming months; premium subscription bundles offering 30% savings compared to a la carte subscriptions in the U.S. and Mexico; smarter search offering a more personalized, dynamic experience; and expansion of Roku Voice into a more capable on-screen assistant outside of entertainment.
The new OS features will be available over the coming months across all Roku TV models and streaming devices in the United States.
The company today also announced that Roku LT OS, its lightweight operating system powering Roku remote and Roku Smart Home is now open source, making the core technology available to programmers.
More information is available on the company’s website.
