Apple allows Matter-certified devices to be automatically compatible with its HomeKit smart home platform.
Smart homes are considered a clear new trend but are fragmented as each company creates a separate platform. When users want to expand or upgrade, they are forced to choose devices from companies that are available or have very limited compatibility. Experts assess this as a bottleneck that prevents smart homes from growing as quickly as expected.
Matter is a standard launched by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) in 2019, but the first devices will not be certified until late 2022. This is not a smarthome platform like Apple HomeKit, Google Home or Amazon Alexa, but simply a standard that helps ensure that smart home devices from different brands can work seamlessly. However, to truly become a common standard, Matter needs the “nod” from all manufacturers.
Apple, a company known for its closed platform approach, is the first major brand to join the Matter standard. The company announced that any device certified under the upcoming Matter standard will automatically be HomeKit-compatible. This is especially important for smarthome manufacturers, as it eliminates the need for separate testing with Apple, saving them money and time in research before commercialization.
Previously, if a smart device wanted to be labeled “Works with Apple Home,” the manufacturer had to pass two separate tests: one for Matter and one for Apple HomeKit. Similarly, if a product wanted to work across platforms, companies had to do an additional set of tests with Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and more.
The simplified certification process for devices to work with HomeKit is expected to increase rapidly starting this year. Consumers will also benefit from lower research costs, making products more competitively priced.
According to the announcement from CSA, Google Home and Samsung SmartThings are both expected to adopt the same method in 2025. This helps Matter truly become a common standard for smarthome and users will only need to pay attention to this standard when setting up the system and buying new devices.
HomeKit was introduced by Apple in 2014 but it was not until early 2020 that the company invested heavily in it. Users can give voice commands and control compatible devices via applications through most Apple products such as iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch, iPad.
