Apple Plans October Debut for New Home Hub, HomePod Mini, Apple TV

Apple plans to launch a new smart-home lineup on October 13, led by a roughly 6-inch home hub designed around its new Siri AI assistant, according to people familiar with the matter, reports Mark Gurman.

Bloomberg reports the company also plans to announce its first HomePod mini update since 2020 and its first new Apple TV set-top box since 2022. The products are expected to be an early test for new CEO John Ternus, who took over on September 1.

The home hub, code-named J490, will use a square display that can sit on a countertop or be mounted on a wall. Apple has designed it to recognise different household members by voice or facial recognition and automatically show personalised information such as contacts, messages, calendar appointments, notes and app layouts.

A visitor mode will hide personal information, while users will also be able to require additional authentication through an iPhone, which can serve as a fallback when the hub cannot correctly identify someone.

Apple reportedly expects customers to place several hubs around the home. They can control connected products such as thermostats and door locks, handle video calls and intercom communication, play music and display iCloud photo slideshows.

The new HomePod mini and Apple TV are expected to keep their existing designs while gaining faster processors capable of supporting Apple’s more powerful Siri AI models. The HomePod mini is also said to be coming in new colours, including green and pink.

Apple is separately developing a privacy-focused home security camera and sensor, code-named J450, as well as a more advanced hub with a 9-inch display and robotic arm. Those products are planned for later.

The iPhone maker originally targeted 2024 for the first smart-home display, updated HomePod mini and Apple TV, but delays to the revamped Siri reportedly pushed back the hardware.

Apple needs to integrate support for AI agents such as Meta’s Muse, SpaceXAI’s Grok Bot and OpenAI’s Dots into its smart home speakers, because right now Siri AI just isn’t ready for prime time besides controlling smart home devices.