Apple's Ambitious Smart Home Strategy: AI-Powered Devices and homeOS on the Horizon

There's a new Apple Intelligence home device and strategy coming in 2025, per report

After years of treating smart home products like a hobby, Apple is reportedly ready to kickstart an aggressive market push. There are new home devices and a fresh strategy on the way, with Apple Intelligence at the center. Here's what's coming in 2025 and beyond. One of the most interesting tidbits involves how Apple plans to utilize AI as part of its future smart home products. The company's goal is to use its new Apple Intelligence platform to offer home automation on steroids, as well as precise control of applications, devices and media. A core piece of Apple Intelligence is a new App Intents system that allows the Siri digital assistant to manipulate features inside apps. Siri's ability to perform hundreds of new app actions isn't expected until next spring. But based on the details Apple has shared so far, the upgrade could bring a lot of new power to the assistant. Imagine being able to perform a huge set of iPhone, iPad, and Mac actions without actually touching those devices -- just by talking out loud anywhere in your home. This new Siri capability could be especially well-suited for a new Apple home device. One of the first big steps will be releasing a new smart display -- something people can use to play TV+ streaming content, do FaceTime calls, surf the web, and access apps like Calendar and Notes. It would be an affordable iPad-like screen, and consumers could place multiple units around the house, like they might with a HomePod mini. Our own reporting indicates this product could feature a display that's more square than rectangular, and include an A18 chip. As much as I'd like for Apple Intelligence to come to existing HomePods, it's poised to be a strong selling point for Apple's fresh smart home push and its new products. The smart display, per Gurman, won't necessarily offer the best sound quality. Instead, it appears to complement existing HomePods rather than replacing them. But a future, more expensive smart home product will offer a better music experience. The tabletop device, which is expected to come later, would be on the pricier side -- perhaps around $1,000 -- and focus on home security monitoring, advanced videoconferencing, and media playback with high-quality audio. The screen would be positioned atop a swiveling robotic limb, helping it stand out from competitors' products. It's unclear how this pricier device will set itself apart for home security and videoconferencing purposes. But 'media playback with high-quality audio' is easy enough to understand. It seems the lower-end smart display might be positioned like a HomePod mini -- affordable, but with compromises to hit that budget price. The higher end device would then be more like the full-size HomePod, with advanced capabilities including better sound quality. It's encouraging to hear that Apple is planning a more aggressive approach to the smart home market. As much as the Apple TV 4K and HomePod have their loyal fanbases -- myself included -- there's still plenty of potential for more diverse and powerful smart home products. With Apple Intelligence at the center of these devices, I'm excited to see what's possible. Are you intrigued by Apple's smart home plans? What are you most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments.

New report spills everything about Apple smart display -- price, features and more

With over half of American smartphone owners using an iPhone, Apple has been a mobile success story for years now. In the smart home space, however, it's a different story. The HomePod family of smart speakers -- as good as they are -- struggle to compete with Amazon's all-conquering Alexa-powered Echo devices. But according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple has plans to seriously compete in the space "over the next two years" with "screens and software throughout the house in a way that creates an end-to-end experience." In his latest 'Power On' newsletter, Gurman highlights two devices specifically. The first is a smart display, and something to rival Amazon's Echo Show and Google's Nest Hub. Gurman describes it as an "affordable iPad-like screen", priced so that consumers may feel like placing a number around the house. It will be used for streaming Apple TV Plus, making FaceTime calls, web surfing and accessing planning apps like Calendar and Notes. It's worth remembering that this isn't the first time such a device has been raised, though it does appear to be distinct from rumors of old iPads being converted into smart screens via a special dock, mooted by Gurman in 2022. While the piece doesn't mention what this "affordable" price might be, Gurman does give an indication as to what Apple might be set to charge for something from the luxury end of the market: a "robotic tabletop device", which he claims could sell for "perhaps around $1,000". This would also prominently feature a screen, but here it would be "positioned atop a swivelling robotic limb". Unlike the more day-to-day productivity and entertainment provided by the smart screens, this tabletop device would "focus on home security monitoring, advanced videoconferencing and media playback with high-quality audio". Artificial Intelligence would apparently be at the heart of the device. Gurman writes that it will use AI to intuit its surroundings, who's looking at the screen, what they're doing and who's speaking. While Apple claims that the iPhone 16 is the first device built from the ground up for Apple Intelligence, Gurman thinks this robotic device has a far more convincing claim for that particular accolade as a result. These devices would join the HomePod and Apple TV as devices for the home, but there's more to Apple's strategy than just the products themselves. AI is part of this -- not just the spatial detection features mentioned above, but by using Apple Intelligence to "offer home automation on steroids, as well as precise control of applications, devices and media." Software will also be a vital part of the fight ahead. To that end, Apple is reportedly "building a new Home Ecosystem team" featuring some engineers left directionless after the Apple Car project was shuttered. The software plan includes plans for homeOS, which will apparently be built on the tvOS software which powers Apple TV (itself based on iOS). Beyond that, Gurman believes that Apple's assistance in creating the Matter smart home standard will help break a market which doesn't sit comfortably with the closed ecosystems the company has historically preferred. While Apple is undoubtedly behind Amazon when it comes to smart home market share, Gurman believes the race is far from over, with innovation stalling across the industry. "Right now, nobody has truly mastered the smart home market," he concludes. "But at some point, someone will. If the right pieces fall into place, it could -- and should -- be Apple itself."

Apple has a vision for your smart home - but will it repeat the mistakes of the past?

After a lengthy silence, it looks like Apple might finally be ready to re-enter the smart home market - but has it learned from past mistakes? The company has been out of the smart home game for a long time (it's been silent on the subject since the arrival of the HomePod 2 in January last year), but according to Bloomberg's resident Apple expert Mark Gurman, it's ready to dive right back in with a bevy of new devices and a new operating system. Gurman (a reliable source for insider info) suggests that homeOS will be the connective tissue that links a series of smart displays scattered throughout your home, plus extra devices like a table-mounted robotic arm. We first heard rumors about homeOS back in January this year, when the name was spotted in a beta release of Apple's TV operating system, but now Gurman suggests that it's likely to appear within the next two years. It's an interesting strategy. As Gurman notes, Apple's previous attempts to work its way into our living rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms have come unstuck thanks to its focus on "premium products that work in a closed ecosystem". So why develop yet another proprietary OS - particularly when Apple has contributed to the Matter smart home standard to help the problem of compatibility between smart home devices from different brands? Many people who may consider scattering Apple's smart displays throughout their homes will have already invested in a different system, so why should they ditch their cheap Amazon Echo speakers in favor of something that will likely be much more expensive? Gurman suggests that Apple's new screens will be affordable, but it's hardly likely to undercut Amazon - a company that allegedly lost $25 billion on Echo speakers between 2017 and 2021. Instead, the difference will likely be Apple Intelligence. It seems likely that certain features of its new smart home tech will only be available to those who have fully invested in Apple's ecosystem, in the same way that people with a Windows laptop and an iPhone won't enjoy the same functionality they would if they switched to a MacBook, and Android phone owners get a stunted experience if they try to use a pair of AirPods Pro. Apple's new smart screens will likely use Apple Intelligence to blur the lines between your phone and your home, letting a smarter version of Siri follow you wherever you go, transferring to your smart screens when you get back from work, and taking everything you did during the day with it. All your personal information, preferences, messages, and more will flow between the two, with no effort on your part, in a way they wouldn't be if your home were packed with a mix-and-match selection of devices from different brands. It's been suggested that Amazon may try to recoup some of its speaker-based losses by introducing a premium, AI-powered Alexa subscription. However, Apple has no plans to start charging to Apple Intelligence until at least 2027, which might just give it the edge. Let's just hope they fix the dire state of the Home app, first. iPhone owners will get their first taste of Apple Intelligence when iOS 18.1 launches later this month, and TechRadar's AI channel is the best place to find all the latest news and previews of new features coming your way soon.

Apple targets smart home market as its next big bet

The first part of this strategy includes Apple Intelligence, which will be used to supercharge home automations. It's also said that the AI will be used for precise control of applications, devices, and media. The second part of the strategy involves smart displays. Apple is reportedly working on a new smart display that's like an affordable iPad. People will be able to use the display for Apple TV Plus streaming, FaceTime calls, browsing the web, and accessing apps like Calendar and Notes. It was also previously reported that the company had a tabletop robot in development. This device is said to be a swiveling robotic limb with a smart display attached. It will use AI to detect who is looking at the screen, what people are doing, and who is speaking. The tabletop robot will focus on home security monitoring, advanced videoconferencing, and media playback with high-quality audio. Gurman predicts it could cost around $1,000.

Apple could debut cheaper Vision headset in 2025; Shifts focus to Smart Home market: Report

Apple is preparing to make a significant push into the smart home market with an "aggressive" new strategy, aiming to integrate its screens and software throughout homes, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Over the next two years, Apple will prioritize home hardware, with plans to develop a new homeOS operating system, a smart display, and a high-end robotic tabletop device. To gain a foothold in the smart home market, Apple is working on a new operating system called homeOS, built on the foundations of tvOS, and is revamping its Home app. A major part of this effort is developing a smart display for media consumption, FaceTime calls, and web browsing, which will feature an affordable iPad-like screen for use throughout the home. Additionally, Apple is developing a higher-end device priced around $1,000, designed for home security, videoconferencing, and high-quality media playback. This device will stand out by using a robotic arm to position its screen, adding a unique twist to similar products from competitors. Apple's smart home efforts will rely on broad compatibility with other brands' products, marking a key change from its traditionally closed ecosystem. The company has co-developed the Matter protocol, which ensures Apple devices can work seamlessly with Amazon and Google smart home products. Gurman stressed that artificial intelligence (AI) will play a crucial role in Apple's smart home strategy. The new Apple Intelligence platform will facilitate home automation and provide precise control of devices, enabling the system's AI to recognize users, activities, and voices. The forthcoming tabletop device is anticipated to be the first product fully integrated with this platform. To support this new focus on home technology, Apple is forming a dedicated Home Ecosystem team and shifting some engineers from the company's car project, according to Gurman. Gurman reports that Apple is planning a lower-cost Vision headset for release as early as next year. This cheaper version is expected to cost around $2,000 and will feature downgraded processors and more affordable materials compared to the Vision Pro. Notably, it will likely drop the EyeSight feature, which displays the user's eyes on the outside of the headset. Apple expects the lower-cost headset to sell at twice the volume of the Vision Pro, which is currently priced at $3,499. A second-generation Vision Pro is anticipated to launch in 2026 with a faster chip. Additionally, Apple is exploring smart glasses and AirPods with cameras, aiming to extend the Vision Pro's visual intelligence technology to more products by 2027. Despite these plans, Apple is facing challenges. Gurman points out that Apple is no longer leading in key emerging technologies, particularly in artificial intelligence and spatial computing. The company's rivals are moving faster, and Apple is seen as playing catch-up in several areas, he added.