Apple, Google And Amazon To Make Smart Home Devices Universal With 'Matter'

In a move to unify smart home devices, Apple, Google and Amazon have teamed up with other tech companies to make the home networks more universal and user-friendly.

The tech majors have collaborated to sponsor Matter -- an alliance that certifies smart home devices by placing its logo on them as an indication, CNET reported.

The Matter logo will look like three round-tipped arrows all pointing towards the center. Any smart home device such as Amazon Alexa-responding smart light bulb or Google Home-monitored video doorbell with the logo means they are Matter-certified.

Through certifying smart home devices, the alliance aims to make the technology widely accepted because it is easier to develop. This means having the Matter logo would guarantee that a device is universal.

The team introduced the Matter logo with the expectation that it will soon be appearing as the Wi-Fi emblem, according to a statement released by Tobin Richardson, chief executive of the Connectivity Standards Alliance during an interview before the Matter press event Tuesday.

Back in 2019, Apple, Amazon, Google and the Zigbee Alliance announced the launch of the Connected Home over Internet Protocol (CHIP). CHIP, which is now called Matter, was organized to "simplify development for manufacturers and increase compatibility for consumers."

In a blog post published in Dec. 2019, Google discussed how the technology will benefit both consumers as well as developers. The search engine giant said developers will save costs because they can adhere to a single standard while building their products.

Consumers will have the freedom to choose which technology to use since the smart home devices will be compatible with Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, or other platforms.

Michelle Mindala-Freeman, who runs the marketing for the alliance, noted some of the areas that the technology needs to work upon.

“Matter also should lower barriers between different smart-home ecosystems so you don't have to worry whether a new product will work within your smart home setup,” Freeman said, 9to5 Mac reported.

It is still unclear when the certified accessories will be seen in the market. Matter protocol tech enthusiasts may check out the Zigbee Alliance Github page.