Hisense, a leading global home appliance and consumer electronics brand established in 1969, has a presence in over 160 countries and regions. The group also includes renowned brands like Gorenje, ASKO, and ATAG.
Hisense's unified smart home platform, ConnectLife, launched in 2020 and brings together all the company's brands. With over 1.3 million downloads and serving approximately 400,000 monthly active users, the app allows control of nearly 1 million connected appliances.
Google's Home APIs empower developers by granting access to Google Home's device signals and intelligent automation capabilities. This enables the integration of automation routines directly into Hisense's own Android and iOS apps, creating more personalized experiences across millions of devices. Hisense partnered with Google to leverage the Home APIs in an effort to transform ConnectLife from a single-brand platform into a comprehensive smart home ecosystem.
The Challenge
While Hisense's vision for ConnectLife was to provide sophisticated, scenario-driven smart home experiences, it faced a critical limitation: the platform only supported the Hisense group's ecosystem. This created two significant challenges:
Fragmented user experience: Users who owned smart devices from other brands had to juggle multiple apps to manage their homes. For example, users couldn't automate their Hisense air conditioners to make adjustments based on readings from third-party air quality sensors. This lack of interoperability created significant friction and prevented a truly seamless smart home experience.
Limited automation potential: Without access to third-party devices such as sensors, smart lighting, and other smart home gadgets, the potential for advanced, cross-platform automation was limited.
What Hisense Did
By integrating Google Home APIs, Hisense transformed its ConnectLife app from a standalone application into a comprehensive smart home control center. The updated experience allows users to connect thousands of Matter and "Works with Google Home" certified products directly within the ConnectLife app.
For example, users can now:
- Create routines where a Hisense air conditioner automatically adjusts its fan speed or switches Fresh Air modes based on real-time data from third-party air quality sensors.
- Program smart lights from other brands to flash when a Gorenje oven has finished preheating or an ASKO laundry cycle is complete.
- Automatically override energy-saving settings for a Hisense air conditioner if a third-party presence sensor detects the presence of a pet, ensuring maximum comfort for loved ones.
Hisense credited the ease of implementation to the well-documented APIs and the practical guidance provided by the sample app. This integration will give Hisense a significant speed-to-market advantage for supporting new device types and allows the ConnectLife app to inherit updates and new compatibilities as the Google Home ecosystem evolves.
By integrating with Google Home APIs, we've accelerated our ability to bring Matter support to ConnectLife, breaking down smart home barriers for our users. This has helped transform ConnectLife into a true smart home platform, allowing us to focus on creating smart scenarios that connect our appliances and TVs with third-party devices to enhance daily life. Hisense is now strongly positioned to meet the market's demand for both innovation and interoperability.
David Gold, President of Hisense North America
Results
The integration of Google Home APIs has successfully transformed Hisense's ConnectLife app into a powerful, whole-home automation ecosystem. By bridging Hisense appliances with the wider smart home world, the update delivered immediate, tangible benefits for both users and businesses such as:
Unified whole-home control: Users now manage their entire smart home from the ConnectLife app. This allows for sophisticated automations, like linking a Hisense air conditioner to a third-party air sensor or using smart lights for appliance notifications, increasing the value of existing products.
Accelerated developer innovation and efficiency: The Home APIs integration was 72% faster than building a proprietary Matter fabric. Development and testing for device integrations was also 40-90% more efficient, allowing the team to focus on use case innovation instead of integration maintenance.
Active user engagement: Initial data shows strong user interest in expanding their smart home within ConnectLife. Smart lights, smart plugs, smart speakers, and Google TVs are among the top third-party device categories integrated by ConnectLife users, indicating a clear demand for a unified experience.
Ready to create immersive experiences like Hisense? Start building with the Google Home APIs today!