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Home Assistant is renaming Home Assistant Cloud to Home Assistant Link, a mostly symbolic change that keeps the service’s features and pricing in place. Founder Paulus Schoutsen says the move reflects the project’s opposition to cloud-dependent smart-home products as it works to make Home Assistant easier for mainstream users.
Home Assistant is renaming its optional Home Assistant Cloud service to Home Assistant Link, a change founder Paulus Schoutsen says reflects the project’s opposition to smart-home products that depend on company cloud servers. The service will keep its existing features and pricing, while Home Assistant says it is also working to make its locally run platform easier for new users.
The name change is mostly symbolic, according to The Verge’s report. Link will continue to provide remote access to a user’s Home Assistant setup and internet-dependent features such as Alexa and Google voice control, speech-to-text, text-to-speech and encrypted backups. The report says back-end changes are intended to improve speed and reliability. Pricing remains $6.50 per month or $65 per year.
Home Assistant runs on local hardware and controls devices locally. Without Link or another remote-access method, users cannot control their setup from outside their home network. Schoutsen told The Verge that Link traffic is encrypted and that the service, operated by Home Assistant commercial partner Nabu Casa, cannot access users’ data. He said 60 percent of Link’s profit goes to the nonprofit Open Home Foundation, which runs Home Assistant.
The announcement comes alongside efforts to reduce the platform’s learning curve. Schoutsen said the team is developing simpler dashboards, more intuitive setup and generative AI features, and plans a more user-friendly hub next year. The report also says Home Assistant plans to bring its HACS community store into the platform the following month, making community-built integrations easier to find and install.
Making Local Smart Homes Easier to Use
The shift speaks to a tension in the smart-home market: remote access and online features can be useful, but products that rely on a company’s servers may lose functions when that service is discontinued. Schoutsen pointed to past shutdowns, including Google Nest ending cloud support for older thermostats and the servers for the June Oven being sunset. Such examples show how a connected product can lose capabilities even while its hardware remains in a home.
Home Assistant’s position is that core control should work locally, with online services available where they add value. That approach may appeal to people concerned about data access and long-term product support. But the project faces a usability challenge: Schoutsen said it is installed in an estimated 2.7 million homes, still a fraction of the reach of major platforms such as Alexa, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings and Apple Home. Simpler setup could help it reach more users, though the report does not establish how quickly that will happen.
Home Assistant local control device
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An Optional Service With a Cloud Name
Home Assistant has spent years promoting locally controlled smart-home systems and warning against products tied to proprietary cloud services. Its own optional remote-access offering carried “Cloud” in its name, which Schoutsen said could leave newcomers with the impression that Home Assistant itself runs in the cloud. The rename is intended to clarify that the platform operates on local hardware.
Home Assistant Cloud was not required: users could use other methods to access their systems remotely or enable similar features. According to the report, that remains true under the Link name. The project supports open standards and technologies including Matter, Zigbee, Z-Wave, MQTT and ESPHome, and Schoutsen said he wants manufacturers to provide local control by default and avoid placing basic features behind cloud services.
“Big tech ruined the cloud, so we’re out.”
— Paulus Schoutsen, Home Assistant founder, speaking to The Verge
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How Much Simpler Setup Will Become
The report does not specify a launch date for the new hub beyond saying it is planned for next year, or give details about its hardware, price or final setup process. It also does not describe which generative AI features are planned or when they might arrive. The HACS integration is expected the following month, but the report provides no exact release date.
Schoutsen’s statements about Link’s data access and encrypted traffic are attributed to him in the report; independent technical details about the service’s architecture are not included in the supplied material. The announced name change also does not by itself show whether new users will find the broader Home Assistant platform easier to adopt.
encryption-enabled smart home backup
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Hub and Integration Changes Ahead
Home Assistant’s stated next steps include integrating HACS into the platform the following month and releasing a successor to the Home Assistant Green hub next year, with setup designed to be more accessible. The team is also working on simpler dashboards and other user experience changes. No dates or specifications are provided for those efforts.
Schoutsen also described a “No Device Left Behind” program under which Nabu Casa is developing devices intended to connect existing analog or legacy technology to Home Assistant. The supplied report ends before giving details about the devices, their availability or which products they will support.
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Key Questions
What is Home Assistant Link?
Home Assistant Link is the new name for Home Assistant Cloud, an optional paid service for remote access and internet-dependent features such as voice control and encrypted backups.
Does Home Assistant require Link to control smart-home devices?
No. Home Assistant runs on local hardware and controls a smart home locally. Link provides a convenient way to connect from outside the home network; the report says other methods are also available.
How much does Link cost?
The reported price is $6.50 per month or $65 per year, the same as the former Home Assistant Cloud service.
What changes with the new name?
The name changes from Cloud to Link, and the report says back-end improvements are planned for speed and reliability. The service’s features and pricing remain the same.
When will Home Assistant release its new hub?
Schoutsen said a more user-friendly successor to Home Assistant Green is planned for next year. The report gives no specific release date, price or hardware details.
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