Apple to Launch New 'Smart Home' Platform at WWDC

Apple will launch a new software platform that will let the iPhone directly control lights, security systems and other household gadgets at WWDC next week, according to a report from The Financial Times.

The piece claims Apple will make a "big play" in smart home technology by working with device makers give them official approval, like the "Made for iPhone" program does for some accessories like headphones and speaker docks, and software support in iOS 8.

Nest Thermostat

The scheme will be similar to Apple’s existing “Made for iPhone” label, given to compatible headphones, speakers and other accessories, but with a new brand and logo. Apple may also provide additional checks and assurances that certified products are not vulnerable to hackers.

The Cupertino-based company was likely to emphasise the privacy protections built into its smart home system, one person familiar with Apple’s plans told the FT, given heightened sensitivity about technology companies’ access to personal information amid revelations about US intelligence agencies’ online surveillance programmes.

The piece notes that plans can always change, but that Apple has launched a number of initiatives over the past year or two, including CarPlay and iBeacon, to expand the reach of the iPhone and have it interact more with the real world and other electronic devices in it.

Apple's retail stores sell a number of different components of the so-called "Internet of Things", including the Google-owned Nest Thermostat (pictured above), Philips Hue lightbulbs and Belkin WeMo Wi-Fi enabled light switches.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Monday June 30, 2025 1:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are less than three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
A18 Pro Chip

New MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Spotted in Apple Code

Monday June 30, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
Apple is developing a MacBook with the A18 Pro chip, according to findings in backend code uncovered by MacRumors. Earlier today, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip. The machine is expected to feature a 13-inch display, the A18 Pro chip, and color options that include silver, blue, pink, and yellow. MacRumors...
iPhone Car Key WWDC 2025

Apple Announces 13 Automakers Planning to Offer iPhone Car Keys

Friday June 27, 2025 11:42 am PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. During its WWDC 2025 keynote, Apple said that 13...
maxresdefault

Five Features Coming to AirPods Pro 3

Friday June 27, 2025 10:52 am PDT by
Apple hasn't updated the AirPods Pro since 2022, and the earbuds are due for a refresh. We're counting on a new model this year, and we've seen several hints of new AirPods tucked away in Apple's code. Rumors suggest that Apple has some exciting new features planned that will make it worthwhile to upgrade to the latest model. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Heal...
macbook air spacegray purple

Apple Planning to Launch Low-Cost MacBook Powered By iPhone Chip

Monday June 30, 2025 3:20 am PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In an article published on X, Kuo explained that the device will feature a 13-inch display and the A18 Pro chip, making it the first Mac powered by an iPhone chip. The A18 Pro chip debuted in the iPhone 16 Pro last year. To date, all Apple silicon Macs have contained M-series...
anker power bank recall

PSA: Anker Recalls Multiple Power Banks Due to Fire Risk

Friday June 27, 2025 4:16 pm PDT by
Popular accessory maker Anker this month launched two separate recalls for its power banks, some of which may be a fire risk. The first recall affects Anker PowerCore 10000 Power Banks sold between June 1, 2016 and December 31, 2022 in the United States. Anker says that these power banks have a "potential issue" with the battery inside, which can lead to overheating, melting of plastic...
Chase Sapphire Reserve Apple Perk Feature

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card Introduces New Perk for Apple Customers

Wednesday June 25, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Chase this week announced a series of new perks for its premium Sapphire Reserve credit card, and one of them is for a pair of Apple services. Specifically, the credit card now offers complimentary annual subscriptions to Apple TV+ and Apple Music, a value of up to $250 per year. If you are already paying for Apple TV+ and/or Apple Music directly through Apple, those subscriptions will...
replay all time playlist apple music

Apple Music Debuts All-New Personalized Playlist

Monday June 30, 2025 7:16 am PDT by
As part of its 10-year celebrations of Apple Music, Apple today released an all-new personalized playlist that collates your entire listening history. The playlist, called "Replay All Time," expands on Apple Music's existing Replay features. Previously, users could only see their top songs for each individual calendar year that they've been subscribed to Apple Music, but now, Replay All...

Top Rated Comments

HenryDJP Avatar
145 months ago
As a stockholder I am pretty excited about the coming WWDC.... :apple::apple:

Hate to break it to ya Mr. Stockholder, I have yet to see the stocks increase after any Apple Keynote no matter how awesome the product is.
Score: 43 Votes (Like | Disagree)
2984839 Avatar
145 months ago
A Google shower would make you sign in to Google+, track how many times per day you shower, then sell it to advertisers.

A Facebook shower would have a camera watch you so you can share it with your friends

An Apple shower would only work with an obscure showerhead that uses a non-standard connection, would be no longer supported after 5 years, and would force you to buy a new home to upgrade.

A Linux shower would require that you first spend 40 years becoming a master plumber, carpenter, engineer, and electrician, renovate your entire house from the ground up to install it, and would not be compatible with your utility company's water.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Traverse Avatar
145 months ago
And then my house can be hacked! :eek:

They could *gulp* raise my temperature and run up my electric bill...or, or, or turn of the lights when I'm walking and I fall! ;)
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pgiguere1 Avatar
145 months ago
Good. The biggest problem with domotics today, IMO, is not the hardware, but rather the software and integration.

Each manufacturer will make you use their own app to control their hardware, making it way more complicated than it should. The simplicity that domotics may provide is partially cancelled out by the learning curve/poor integration of the software it comes with.

Apple and Google will probably both offer software that unifies all "smart home" controls inside a single app/service, which is exactly what we need. The fact those two big players will be competing also means consumers will benefit more in the end, especially since Google's solution will probably be available on iOS.

Looks like what was originally a futuristic dream (for decades) will finally catch on with mainstream consumers. I'm excited to see where this will go, and how exactly this will integrate with Apple's business model. Google will obviously collect data. Apple may just lock you further in the iOS ecosystem, making sure you keep buying their hardware and MFi accessories.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
The Phazer Avatar
145 months ago
The piece claims Apple will make a "big play" in smart home technology by working with device makers give them official approval, like the "Made for iPhone" program does for some accessories like headphones and speaker docks

You mean the Made for iPhone program that took the huge ecosystem advantage Apple had in speaker accessories and combined with Lightning completely blew it by being hard to work with and stupidly expensive?

Or the one that killed the iOS controller marketplace stone dead by mandating poor quality suppliers and making the offerings stupidly overpriced so it never got going?

This initiative is dead at birth if it's related to Made for iPhone.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iLoveiTunes Avatar
145 months ago
As a stockholder I am pretty excited about the coming WWDC.... :apple::apple:
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)