Apple’s HomeView Makes AI the Center of Its Smart Home Push
Has launched HomeView, a $299 smart home hub built around an AI-powered Siri, as it looks to challenge Amazon and Google in a market. Apple — full details here.
Apple has launched HomeView, a $299 smart home hub built around an AI-powered Siri, as it looks to challenge Amazon and Google in a market it has struggled to crack. The 7-inch display, unveiled at the company’s “Welcome Home” event in New York, can sit on a tabletop or mount on a wall.
The device gives Apple a dedicated control point for household technology, with a screen for managing connected devices and a camera that can recognize up to six household members. It runs on Apple’s A18 chip. Apple also introduced refreshed versions of Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini.
A crowded market, still open to change
Apple has spent years building smart-home products, including HomePod speakers and the Home app, but never launched a hub of its own. Amazon and Google gained ground with lower-cost speakers and displays. Now, the arrival of more capable AI models is prompting a fresh hardware cycle.
“Most smart speakers and hubs in homes today are low-cost devices that can't run AI at the edge, so they are ripe for replacement,” Counterpoint Research research director Mohit Agrawal said after the event. Amazon and Google have only recently begun updating hardware for Alexa+ and Gemini, he said, leaving room for Apple to compete.
That opening is not a guarantee of demand. Smart-home devices have been available for years, yet many households still rely on a handful of basic connected products. Apple is betting that a more capable Siri and a single screen for controlling the home will make the category more useful.
A new product test for Apple
HomeView also marks the first major hardware event under Chief Executive John Ternus, who took over on September 1 after 25 years at Apple, most recently leading hardware engineering. The company is seeking fresh hardware growth as its services business faces regulatory pressure.
Apple’s challenge will be to turn the hub’s AI features into a reason for people to buy another screen for their home. The HomeView starts at $299 in the United States.
Source: axios.com
