Apple reportedly teams with LG on smart lock, thermostat, and video doorbell

Apple and LG are building a smart home lineup, report says

Apple is working with LG on a family of smart home devices — including a smart lock, a thermostat, and a video doorbell — according to a Bloomberg report covered by both TechCrunch and The Verge. Although Apple is reportedly involved in developing the hardware, the finished products are expected to carry LG's branding rather than Apple's own.

What's in the lineup

The reported lineup goes beyond the three headline devices. Bloomberg's sources describe an indoor security camera, an outdoor security camera, a floodlight camera, and a deadbolt-style smart lock.

The thermostat has already surfaced in regulatory paperwork: The Verge points to an FCC filing for an "LG Smart Thermostat" that includes diagrams of the device, which lends the rumor some documentary weight.

Two technical details stand out. Several of the devices are said to support Thread and Matter, the cross-vendor smart home standards, as part of a broad refresh of Apple's HomeKit platform. And the door lock reportedly includes ultra-wideband radios, which could allow it to unlock automatically as a resident approaches the door.

Built around a new hub

The LG hardware is designed to integrate with Apple's long-rumored smart home hub, which Bloomberg and other outlets expect to be unveiled at an event on October 13. The hub is said to feature a six-inch square display that can rest on a countertop or mount on a wall, with Siri built in. The Verge reports that the same event may also bring a new HomePod mini and an updated Apple TV.

The LG-made devices themselves could be announced around the same time, TechCrunch notes, though an announcement would not necessarily mean an immediate release. TechCrunch adds that it contacted Apple for more information.

Why it matters

The lineup marks a shift in how Apple approaches the home. Rather than shipping every product under its own logo, the company is reportedly using what The Verge describes as a second-party arrangement: Apple shapes the design and software experience, while LG supplies the brand name on the box. That would give Apple's home ecosystem tightly integrated accessories in categories the company has never entered on its own — locks, thermostats, and doorbells — without Apple stretching its brand across that hardware.

It also sets up a more direct clash with Amazon. As TechCrunch observes, Amazon already sells a wide range of comparable devices, including its Ring security cameras, and the new products can reasonably be read as Apple's answer to that catalogue. Where Amazon built its presence through acquisitions and sheer breadth, Apple appears to be betting on devices engineered to work hand in glove with its upcoming hub.

The reported Thread and Matter support matters beyond Apple's walls, since devices built on those standards can interoperate with other platforms as well. And the fact that Bloomberg frames the effort as a reset for HomeKit suggests the platform has been waiting for exactly this kind of first-party-adjacent hardware.

None of this is confirmed until Apple or LG says so publicly. But with the hub event reportedly days away and an FCC filing already on record, the picture should clarify quickly.