What is Samsung Ambient Mode and how does it work?

This past summer, Samsung thought it would be a good idea to break folks' TVs in the United Kingdom. It wasn't real, of course – it was an attempt to show off a core feature of its 2018 lineup: Ambient Mode.
It spiked some interest in the feature, leading people to wonder – what does it actually do, exactly?
I was wondering the same thing, so I paid a visit to Samsung's loft in NYC – a full showroom meant to resemble a real apartment, right in the Meatpacking District. The cozy