- Ring cameras can now notify you of unusual activity
- The new tool uses artificial intelligence to ‘learn’ what is normal for your home
- There are also new sensors to detect safety and security issues
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We’re at CES 2026 in Las Vegas, where Ring has just announced a set of new AI-powered upgrades to make your video doorbell and security cameras even better at keeping your home and family safe.
One of the most interesting additions, AI Unusual Event Alerts, sends you a notification when your camera or doorbell detects something that looks out of the ordinary. It uses Video Descriptions technology, launched last June, which analyzes the event that triggered your camera to start recording and sends a text description to your phone so you can decide if it’s something that needs your attention.
What is common for one person’s home may be unusual for another, so this is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Instead, AI Unusual Event Alerts ‘learns’ what is normal for your home by monitoring everyday activity, then alerts you when something happens that doesn’t fit the regular pattern.
If you currently find that you are receiving too many alerts, you can choose to only be notified when something out of the ordinary happens.
Active Alerts is another new AI-powered tool for your Ring cameras and is designed to deter potential threats to your property as soon as they are detected.
This feature, available if you’re currently enrolled in Ring’s Virtual Security Guard program, will instantly deliver alerts to potential burglars or other threats through your camera’s speaker while a trained security expert takes a closer look at what’s happened to see if further action is needed (such as initiating a two-way conversation or contacting emergency services).
Sensors and switches
Ring also used its CES booth to unveil a new set of sensors and other devices that are based on Amazon Sidewalk (a low-power network that can transmit small amounts of data much further than your home Wi-F) and don’t need a separate hub.
Until now, Sidewalk has only been available in the US, but it is now also rolling out in Canada and Mexico, with the EU, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Japan all set to follow later this year.
The new Sidewalk-enabled hardware includes:
- Door and window contact sensors
- Motion detectors
- A panic button
- Glass break sensors
- Outdoor sensor
- Smoke and carbon monoxide sensors
- Flood and freeze sensors
- Temperature and humidity sensors
- Air quality sensors
- A sump pump sensor
There’s also a bundle of new controllers that make it easier to operate your Ring smart home devices manually, including a fan controller, smart plug, a single light switch and a smart light remote.
Grab some apps
Finally, Ring has opened the doors to a new app store where you’ll download tons of third-party tools to help you get more out of your Ring devices. It is currently only available in the US, but will hopefully launch elsewhere soon.
You need a compatible Ring subscription to use these apps, and depending on the tool you want to use, you may need to sign up for a third-party service and connect it to your Ring account.
The range of apps is expected to grow in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for what’s available via the Ring app or on Ring.com.
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