The sentiment being expressed here is that, similar to the way that the car and clock enriched lives, today, the smartphone is poised to do the same. Put another way, Comparable to the way the car and clock did, in their time, today the smartphone is poised to enrich lives.........
The 'much as' is probably a contraction of 'in so much as' or 'in as much as' which has a slightly old-fashioned air to it. I hope that helps - even a little bit?