Apple is making a renewed push into the smart home market, positioning an upgraded Siri AI as the core of its next hardware strategy to challenge the long-standing dominance of Amazon and Google.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Apple has nearly completed development on three new smart home products. These include its first smart home hub centered on a new Siri AI, along with next-generation Apple TV and HomePod mini devices.
The new Apple TV and HomePod mini are expected to launch this fall, while the smart home hub is slated for release between October of this year and early next year. Following this news, Apple shares rose as much as 1.8% during Tuesday's trading session to $342.89, pushing the company's market capitalization above $5 trillion for the first time.
This marks Apple's most significant product expansion in the smart home sector in recent years. As generative AI increasingly permeates home environments, Apple aims to leverage Siri AI to reinvent the home device experience, competing directly with products like the Amazon Echo Show and Google Nest Hub, while fostering a new growth engine for its slowing wearables and accessories business.
Home Hub: Facial Recognition Drives Personalized Experience
The most anticipated product is Apple's first home hub device.
This product features a roughly 7-inch square display and runs a new operating system built on Apple TV's tvOS. The interface blends design elements from tvOS, watchOS, and iOS, offering interactions via icon grids, widgets, and apps. The device supports FaceTime video calls, home security monitoring, multi-device intercom, and integrates smart home controls, photo browsing, calendar management, and music playback. It also offers a personalized watch face experience similar to the Apple Watch.
Compared to existing smart display devices, its key differentiator is facial recognition capability. The system can identify the user in front of the screen in real-time and detect their distance from the device, dynamically adjusting the interface layout, font size, and displayed content. It automatically loads the user's calendar, reminders, and other personalized information.
According to sources, the product currently exists in two versions. One version, internally codenamed J490, features a screen placed on a hemispherical base, resembling a "sliced" HomePod mini. The other version, codenamed J491, can be mounted on a wall using a horizontal bracket. Apple envisions users deploying multiple such devices throughout their homes, creating a unified home interaction network.
Software Delays Slow Hardware Release Pace
Development on these three products reportedly began as early as 2024. Apple originally planned to launch these new devices alongside a completely overhauled Siri, but repeated setbacks in the new Siri's development forced adjustments to the entire product roadmap.
Ultimately, the revamped assistant will be released under the brand name "Siri AI" this fall, alongside the launch of iOS 27 and other systems.
Due to software development delays, the related hardware release timelines have been postponed multiple times. Initially planned for 2024, then pushed to spring 2025 and fall 2025, and then further delayed to spring 2026, Apple has revised its product schedule several times. Sources indicate that because these devices are highly dependent on Siri AI for their core experience, the software and hardware are difficult to launch separately, and theoretically, further delays are possible.
Meanwhile, the new Apple TV and HomePod mini (internally codenamed J265 and B525, respectively) will retain their current designs, primarily upgrading to faster processors and supporting Siri AI features. Sources say the two products are expected to be priced at $199 and $129, respectively.
Robot Hub and Security Camera Already in Planning
Beyond the three upcoming products, Apple is also planning at least two higher-end smart home devices.
One is a robotic version of the home hub equipped with a mechanical arm, featuring a larger screen of about 9 inches. The arm can drive the display to automatically follow the user's movement. For example, during a FaceTime video call, the device can automatically adjust its camera angle to keep the person centered in the frame or track other objects in the room.
The other is a high-end indoor security camera, internally codenamed J450, which will be paired with a home security system, directly targeting Amazon's Ring's leading position in the home security market.
With the home hub, Apple TV, HomePod mini, robotic device, and security products being integrated into its plans, Apple is rebuilding its smart home ecosystem around Siri AI. This is one of the first times Apple has systematically organized its home strategy around AI capabilities, rather than a single hardware product.
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