Episode 429: Why Roku wants a smart home OS

Episode 429: Why Roku wants a smart home OS

Author: Stacey Higginbotham, tech journalist June 29, 2023 Duration: 1:01:00

This week we learned a bit more about streaming provider Roku’s plans to build a smart home operating system. This is in addition to all of the new smart home devices the company has developed using Wyze hardware. Because Kevin Tofel is on vacation, I’m talking about all this with my co-host and the creator of the Lowpass newsletter Janko Roettgers, who is a smart TV expert. Janko explains what’s happening with this deal and the overall shift to control smart homes through televisions. We then talk about smart energy management options from SmartThings, and Josh.ai’s new JoshGPT service that combines traditional smart home control with a large language model. In smaller news bits we cover two new sensors from SimpliSafe, new Matter-enabled Wi-Fi light switches from TP-Link’s Tapo brand, a potential audio streaming device from Eve, and purported new sensors for IKEA’s smart home ecosystem. Nanoleaf also launched a reasonably-priced way to give your TV ambient lighting. We also hear from a listener about his review of the Bond IR device we recommended a few weeks back.

Josh.ai’s new generative AI model can answer many more questions than a traditional home assistant. And it can still turn on the lights. Image courtesy of Josh.ai.

Our guest this week is Scott Ford, the CEO of Pepper. Pepper recently teamed up with Embedded Insurance to create an add-on cyber insurance policy that Pepper can offer through its partnerships with service providers and consumer device makers. Pepper provides a smart home application and service for other businesses, for example providing a smart home interface for an ISP or providing cloud storage services for a connected camera maker. Much like adding on cloud storage can generate extra revenue, adding cyber insurance or other insurance policies can generate money. So customers of Pepper’s customers may soon get a notification asking if they want to pay $5 for cyber insurance that will offset some of the costs of identity theft, cyberbullying, cyber extortion, and more. Ford talks about the cyber insurance product and about how connected devices are changing the way that insurers market their products, and how they assess risk. Honestly, that risk assessment is both exciting and a little bit scary. Enjoy the show.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Janko Roettgers, creator of the Lowpass newsletter
Guest: Scott Ford, the CEO of Pepper
Sponsors: Blynk and Particle

  • Does Roku really want to build a smart home OS or just sell more gear?
  • Josh.ai brings generative AI to smart homes, and it’s nice
  • Nanoleaf’s 4-D screen mirror tech is pretty cool
  • Why your smart camera maker may soon offer you insurance
  • How connected devices change the way insurance is sold … and priced

The post Episode 429: Why Roku wants a smart home OS appeared first on IoT Podcast - Internet of Things.


For anyone trying to make sense of a world where everything from your thermostat to a factory floor is getting smarter, The Internet of Things Podcast-Stacey On IoT offers essential context. Veteran tech journalist Stacey Higginbotham, who brings her experience from Fortune, and co-host Kevin Tofel break down the weekly flood of news, separating genuine innovation from mere hype. Their analysis spans the entire connected ecosystem, diving into the gadgets in our homes, the sensors transforming industrial workspaces, and the complex enterprise systems tying it all together. This isn't just theoretical; it's a practical guide to the business and technology decisions shaping our networked future. You'll hear from a range of voices that have built and critiqued this landscape, including pioneers like Vint Cerf, insightful commentators like Om Malik, and practitioners from companies such as Amazon, AT&T, and IBM Watson. Listening to this podcast provides a crucial framework for understanding the real-world implications of connectivity, whether you're an industry professional, a curious developer, or simply someone wondering how all these "smart" things actually work-and what they mean for privacy, security, and daily life. It's the clear-eyed conversation you need to navigate the ever-expanding Internet of Things.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

The Internet of Things Podcast - Stacey On IoT
Podcast Episodes
Episode 437: Goodbye and good luck [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:53
This is the final episode of The Internet of Things Podcast, and to send us off after eight years, we don’t discuss the big news of the day such as Arm’s planned IPO, a new display option from Brilliant, or new gear from…
Episode 436: Can Alexa (and the smart home) stand on its own? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:03
Amazon’s head of devices, David Limp, plans to retire as part of a wave of executives that have been leaving Amazon in the last year. Also, next year Alexa and the Amazon Echo will be 10 years old, which prompted us to t…
Episode 435: How Honeywell is approaching TinyML [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:26
This week we make a big announcement about the podcast and newsletter. Get ready! Then we talk about the issues with Matter and who’s to blame. We lay out the challenges that both we and The Verge have highlighted with T…
Episode 434: So many new hubs, and a primer on LPWANs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:19
This week’s show kicks off with a surprising revelation from Kevin, who has decided to swap out his smart home platform. He explains his choice, which also may represent a theme of sorts, as we see more and more high-end…
Episode 433: Tracking air quality with the IoT [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:54
This week we didn’t see a ton of news, yet we managed to talk about several big trends in IoT. We started with an update on Amazon’s planned acquisition of iRobot, and Amazon dropping the price by 15%. We explain why and…
Episode 432: How to make IoT more consumer-friendly [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:55
This week we dig in on two topics that will make the internet of things friendlier for consumers. The first is the newly announced cybersecurity label plan from the White House that will create a way for consumers to see…
Episode 431: Why Josh.ai added ChatGPT to the home [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:10
This week on the show, Kevin and I start off talking about some of the Roku gear I’ve been playing with for the last week. We discuss the gear and the subscription plans and how they compare with what else is on the mark…
Episode 430: The theme of this show is wearables [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:30
This week’s podcast focuses on wearables, from hearing aids to mixed reality headsets. We start the show talking about the potential future of Apple AirPods as a hearing aid or an additional health-focused wearable. And…
Episode 428: How to add ChatGPT to the smart home [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:02
This week’s podcast tackles Kevin’s real-world experience with the Google Pixel tablet and speaker dock. He liked the tablet, but as a smart home accessory it’s lacking, which is what we had originally anticipated. But i…
Episode 427: What it takes to put LTE on the moon [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:02
We start this week’s show with a review of DeviceScript, a limited subset of the TypeScript programming language, built by Microsoft to bring a more modern programming option to connected device programing. Kevin downloa…