Google Outage Spurs Author to Build Local-First Smart Home Using Matter
The author's smart home went on strike in August 2026 due to Google outages, causing issues with Nest Hubs and voice commands. The author realized that their house was dependent on a working internet connection and Google's services being up.
This experience prompted the author to build a local-first smart home using Matter, which allows devices to run locally without relying on cloud services. However, even with Matter, the author found that some automations still depended on Google's servers.
To truly achieve local control, the author opted for Home Assistant, an open-source software that runs on a small box in their house and holds their automations and schedules. This setup allows the author to run their smart home independently of Google's services.