The CSA’s Head of Technology gives us his vision for the future of Matter
I think that anyone and his dog – anyone and his dog who’d be reading The Ambient, at least – knows that Matter is trying to establish itself as the smart home standard.
But, over in Berlin at IFA 2024, I sat down with Chris LaPré, Head of Technology at the Connectivity Standards Alliance, who explained that there are wider plans afoot.
LaPré stated: “It’s definitely the plan to continue to expand where Matter’s footprint is,” and described how he sees Matter expanding into commercial buildings, multi-dwelling units, libraries, retail and more.
But he also said that there are plans for Matter beyond the conventional smart home devices it currently works with, within our homes.
“We started with Matter 1.0 and it was very traditionally smart home focused… So door locks, thermostats, light bulbs, smart plugs and so on,” he explained. “And then, as of 1.2 ,we started to expand that; so air purifiers and robot vacuums were the two big ones – device types you don’t necessarily think of as smart home devices.
“So you can now combine rules and scenes so that means you could, like if I have guest over, stop the vacuum, turn the air purifier on and turn the lights on to the right temperatures.
“And that was great, but what is the actual experience there? It’s basically the same sort of smart home scene thing,” he continued.
“But, as of 1.3 we added electric vehicle charging and energy reporting and so now, we kind of have a little energy management system that’s there and you can even layer AI on the top of that if you want.”
Matter 1.3 landed in May and, aside from support for new device types such as leak and freeze detectors, rain sensors, water valves, microwave ovens, cooktops, extractor hoods and laundry dryers, energy reporting capabilities were the big new addition.
Matter users, once brands start using the functionality of Matter 1.3, will be able to gain deeper insights into their energy consumption, allowing them to make more informed decisions to reduce their environmental footprint.
You can really start to save a lot of money, even with relatively dumb systems.
And it’s that focus on personal energy use, along with the economic implications of our day-to-day powered-up lifestyles, that will shape the next big Matter releases.
“This is where 1.4 is at least charging to go,” LaPré told us. “We’re adding heat pumps, we’re adding solar panels and pricing, and we’ve got battery walls on a longer trajectory as well.
“Think about once those devices are all done, basically the whole home energy management system where a little app, with maybe a little AI, can really start to save the user money,” he explained.
“Things like charging your car only when the solar panels are working well, using the battery wall for time shifting of appliances, and you can really start to save a lot of money, even with relatively dumb systems. And you don’t need to change your behavior whatsoever.”
LaPré was also keen to point out that Matter could prove pivotal as we, hopefully, become more aware of our personal energy use and the implications – both fiscal and environmental – of being smarter with our electricity consumption.
“Companies might be capable of selling you a smart thermostat every few years,” he explained. “You might be willing to replace your thermostat for $100, $200, whatever it is. But you’re probably not going to replace your solar panel all that often. You’re not going to buy a new electric vehicle charge just for this. So that standard is really important there.”
I believe if you got connected devices coming into your home, it should be Matter.
But it’s not just energy where LaPré thinks Matter could play an important role in your connected abode. He also spoke to us about his ideas regarding Matter as a standard for personal medical devices too.
“I believe if you got connected devices coming into your home, it should be Matter,” he stated. “So if you have a CPAP machine today that’s got a cellular signal in it, and it’s not the cheapest way to do it, but that’s what works for every CPAP machine in the world.
“If Matter was available, would it change? It’d probably be a much cheaper solution to do it that way. You’d scan a QR code and now your CPAP machine is on the Matter network. Go to a hospital, you go to a hotel room, scan the QR code there, get it on the network there too, and it works.”
But this idea isn’t likely to be anything we see in the short-term as the Alliance would need need to be driven by appropriate brands showing an interest first.
“We don’t currently have a medical company saying, ‘yes, I want to have Matter for that today,’ but as we expand our footprint I think it’s just going to make sense. If not Matter what else? What other standard is it going to be that has a pairing mechanism, has an extensive data model etc?”
What is clear is that Matter is on the charge. Despite some (okay, a lot) of teething issues, mass adoption across the consumer tech market is clearly taking place – you only need to look at the volume of new Matter devices on show at IFA to see that – and new categories such as those announced in 1.2 and 1.3 will only accelerate the growth and awareness.
