Google’s Smart Home strategy has long felt a bit halfway through. Like the side project, there were reminders set up for someone in Mountain View to check in every few months.
Amazon has bulldozed Alexa’s way into a huge number of homes with Echo Devices, and Apple has carved out its niche with a super slick home kit, but Google Home has been like a third wheel for a few years.
By around 22/2021, Google was actually leading the way for Voice Assistant Front, but despite its early promises, domination appears to have diminished. A report just published by Statista includes a huge tech miles behind Bezos and The Gang.
And it’s not a market where you can afford to lose the pace. The global voice assistant market is projected to reach approximately $55 billion by 2033, more than 10 times the current market.
Google knows that. To exchange sets where Gemini AI will swap out the Google Assistant and waves of “more useful” devices on the horizon, Big G will have a last chance to play real play with the smart home crown.
Play to catch up
The problem wasn’t Google’s technology. That was an execution. The Nest brand, which Google engulfed Google for over $3 billion in 2014, was once synonymous with Smart Home Innovation and Slick Device Design.
But it’s stagnant, just like the entire range of Google Home hardware.
When was the last time you got a really exciting Google Home product? Nest audio speakers for 2020? Second generation nesting hub for 2021?
Meanwhile, Amazon is rakes up new Alexa-powered devices like Clockwork, including new ideas like the Echo Hub and form factors that push the boundary a bit, like the new Echo Show 15 and 21.
It is true that Apple has not really lit up the world of smart homes with Hardware in the past few years, but rumors suggest that it is about to change, and on the software side, Homekit and Home apps have evolved rapidly.
New Playbook
Google appears to have a plan and cleans the house ahead of its execution.
The Nest Protect and Nest X Yale locks have been killed, the functionality has been removed from the old device, and the message is clear.
But what exactly is “new”? Nes thermostat update? A new Google TV streamer? It’s not going to cut it.
The answer may be Gemini Eye. A smarter, more conversational voice assistant, and something that can handle much more complex tasks. Real Alexa + Rival for Smart Home Running… if it works.
Replacing Gemini’s Google Assistant doesn’t make sense even if it remains outdated when running hardware.
Smart displays and speakers remain the backbone of the smart home ecosystem, and without the new and compelling hardware to showcase Gemini’s supposed intelligence, this transition is nothing more than a rebrand.
The bigger issue is trust and reputation. Google Home has alienated quite a number of smart home enthusiasts over the past few years.
Google Assistant has always been a mixed bag of Smart Home Control, and Gemini hasn’t been released accurately with clean records.
If Google is hoping that homeowners will hand over their daily routines to unproven voice assistants, you need to prove that Gemini is not another AI experiment destined to be quietly shut down when the next big thing comes.
I need a new toy
If Google is serious about this improvement, it needs to go a long way. This means that the new flagship smart display that can compete with the top-end echo show and the Apple rumored HomePod can compete on the screen.
You also need a complete overhaul of the Google Home app to make Smart Home Control feel as seamless as Apple Home, or to feel as detailed as anything like Homey or Smartthings.
People also want to work together in one place seamlessly. The nasty merger of Nest and Google Home apps appears to be sorted out after years of absolute chaotic nonsense at the end, but Google can’t afford to complicate things like this again.
The landscape of smart homes is changing rapidly. Amazon is reportedly considering rebranding its Echo device under the Alexa name. This has been its advantage over the past few years, with AI-powered home assistants getting much smarter, but more competitive as well.
If Google wants to avoid irrelevant decay in the smart home market, the Gemini AI and the hardware they follow must be more than just a small refresh.
