From “Illuminating Spaces” to “Healing Hearts”: How Dynamic Soft-Color Lighting Is Ushering in the Emotional Era of Illumination?

When lighting is no longer just a tool to illuminate spaces, and when smart technology resonates with natural rhythms, the lighting industry is undergoing a profound transformation—from "functional satisfaction" to "emotional healing." At the recent Guzhen Light Expo Mingren Online Salon, Mr. Shengxia Gao, General Manager of Sima Guang Whole-House Smart Lighting and founder of Dynamic Soft Color Light, presented on the theme "Resonating with Nature — Innovating Healthy and Emotional Lighting in the Next Decade of Smart Technology". He shared his insights and practical experience gained from 18 years in the lighting industry, unveiling new possibilities for the future of lighting.

From Nordic Landscapes to Emotional Lighting: A Cross-Border Exploration of Light

Teacher Shengxia Gao's journey into emotional lighting began with the natural beauty and design aesthetics of Northern Europe. During his six years working and living in Denmark, he was deeply moved by the brilliant evening sunsets still visible at 11:30 PM during the summer solstice, and by the flowing light and shadows beneath the aurora borealis—natural light is never just a single color temperature; it is a layered, warm carrier of emotion. Furthermore, the soft-color lighting designs used on intercontinental flights to help adjust jet lag made him realize that light can directly influence human circadian rhythms and psychological states.

With these reflections in mind, Teacher Shengxia Gao collaborated with the century-old Nordic design firm C.F. Møller to meticulously develop an original dynamic soft-color light formula.

Unlike common RGB strip lights on the market, this soft-color light is based on a full-spectrum continuous spectrum, faithfully reproducing real-world phenomena such as sunsets, auroras, and twilight. Through low-saturation colors and slowly flowing dynamic effects, it infuses spaces with healing power. "Lighting should give ordinary moments an extraordinary texture and imbue space design with emotional value," he emphasizes as the core philosophy of emotional lighting.

Three Core Breakthroughs of Dynamic Soft Color Light Redefine Smart Lighting

During his presentation, Teacher Shengxia Gao detailed three major breakthroughs of dynamic soft-color light, challenging conventional perceptions of colored lighting within the industry:

★Breakthrough One: Full Spectrum + Dual Color Temperatures—The Perfect Fusion of Essential Functionality and Luxury

Dynamic soft-color light features "RGBCWIC + Dynamic Soft Color Light Algorithm." It does not pursue flashy designs detached from practicality but instead builds upon superior dual-color temperature functionality to deliver an enhanced user experience. Just as high-end smartphones must ensure core communication functions, Sima Guang integrates essential dual-color temperature capabilities with emotional soft-color functions, meeting everyday comfort needs while allowing users to regulate mood through color, thus avoiding the hassle of adding extra LED strips.

★Breakthrough Two: Dynamic Algorithm + Pre-Made Formulas—Saying Goodbye to Color-Tuning Troubles

To address designers' pain point of "wanting to use colored light but fearing frequent post-sales color adjustments," Sima Guang has created 96 pre-made soft-color light formulas, covering four categories: Natural Scenery, Oriental Elegance, Artistic Fantasy, and Global Ambiance. No manual color tweaking is needed; with a single tap, users can summon scenes like auroras, sunsets, or Dunhuang-inspired trendy designs, enabling ordinary users to effortlessly enjoy professional-grade lighting design.

★Breakthrough Three: Open Ecosystem Integration—Adapting to Diverse Smart Scenarios

In today's smart lighting landscape, ecosystem compatibility has become a core competitive advantage. Sima Guang has achieved comprehensive integration with mainstream ecosystems such as Mi Home, Tuya, and Apple HomeKit, positioning itself as the "preferred brand for soft-color light in open ecosystems," allowing users of different smart systems to experience the charm of emotional lighting. Meanwhile, its self-developed lamp films and LED strips support control of up to 50 square meters with a single controller, balancing ease of installation with stability.

Beyond Lights: From Selling Individual Products to Selling Experiential Scenarios—the Lighting Industry's Path to Evolution

Teacher Shengxia Gao argues that the current "involution" in the lighting industry essentially stems from downward competition. The true way forward lies in upward breakthroughs, by expanding business boundaries through lighting and transitioning from "selling lights" to "selling scenarios".

Sima Guang's practice offers a clear roadmap: soft-color light serves as a core bridge, driving linked sales of surrounding product categories such as dual-color temperature downlights, multi-button smart switch panels, background music systems, and large-screen projectors.

For example, a living room audio-visual-light package can upgrade an original lighting plan priced at 2,999 yuan to a full-scenario smart solution worth 39,999 yuan, increasing the average transaction value by more than 15 times. Customized light formulas can also be tailored for different demographics—for pregnant women, a "Summer Afterglow" formula reduces eye strain; for seniors, a "Red Maple Autumn" setting improves sleep; and for children, colorful light effects spark imagination, adding a human touch to lighting solutions.

In terms of product form, Sima Guang has also achieved multiple breakthroughs: from point sources and line sources to surface sources, cloud-mirror light panels adapt to diverse settings such as Lamborghini showrooms and luxury stone feature walls in high-end residences, simulating blue skies, white clouds, and sunset glows to significantly enhance the emotional value of spaces.

Customizing Emotional Value for Different Demographics

Besides dual-color temperatures and soft-color light formulas, Sima Guang offers two additional features: light follows shadow movement, light follows sound movement.

As of now, Sima Guang has cumulatively exported over 100 million units of high-end professional lighting products and more than 10 million smart lighting products. Backed by  84 core patents, it has been recognized as a National High-Tech Enterprise and a Specialized, Refined, Distinctive, and Innovative Enterprise.

Interactive Q&A

Unlocking the Core Secrets of Emotional Lighting

During the interactive session following the presentation, General Manager Gao addressed everyone's questions one by one, offering valuable insights:

1. What are the core driving forces behind the shift in lighting from functionality to scenario-based applications and ultimately to emotional value? Can you use specific scenarios to explain how dynamic soft-color light "resonates with nature"?

Answer: The core drivers stem from consumption upgrades fueled by rising per capita GDP and the increased demand for home-space healing following the pandemic.

In the past, we focused on "whether something exists," whereas now we care more about "how good it is". As a high-frequency, essential, and ceremonial smart category, lighting naturally becomes an important medium for emotional expression.

For example, upon returning home from work, instead of instant bright white light, the lighting gently emerges as soft-colored light, accompanied by soothing background music and a comfortable temperature, mimicking natural transitions of light and shadow. This instantly helps people unwind from work fatigue—this is the essence of resonating with nature: restoring the flow and warmth of natural light and shadow.

2. How do the "low-saturation continuous spectrum" and "light formula design aesthetics" of dynamic soft-color light work together to achieve emotional connectivity? How can ordinary consumers intuitively perceive this enhanced value?

Answer: The low-saturation continuous spectrum provides the foundation, recreating the full range of natural light and avoiding visual fatigue caused by spectral gaps in RGB light, making users feel as if they are immersed in nature; the aesthetics of light formula design transform this spectrum into a perceptible, scenario-based experience, precisely matching different emotional needs through color combinations and dynamic rhythms.

Ordinary consumers need no specialized knowledge; simply stepping into a space lit with soft-color light allows them to intuitively feel the difference—just like the lobby lighting in a five-star hotel, which relaxes guests without explicit explanation.

What we are doing is democratizing this healing lighting found in upscale commercial spaces, enabling ordinary people to turn their homes into five-star healing havens at one-tenth the cost.

Conclusion

From the natural light and shadows of Northern Europe to Chinese home environments, from professional research on LED luminescent materials to the full-scale implementation of emotional lighting, Teacher Shengxia Gao has demonstrated through 18 years of dedication and innovation that the future of the lighting industry lies in upward growth.

When dynamic soft-color light turns every lamp into a conduit for emotions, and when smart systems seamlessly connect nature with daily life, we have reason to believe that a new era of lighting characterized by  "light with emotion, warmth in the home" has arrived.

Note: This article is compiled from the recording of Teacher Shengxia Gao's presentation titled "Resonating with Nature — Innovating Healthy and Emotional Lighting in the Next Decade of Smart Technology" delivered on December 26, 2025, at Ming Classroom, and published by Ming Classroom.

Click here for the course replay