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Apple’s dedicated smart home controller is looking less likely to arrive by the end of 2025, with a 2026 launch for the Home Hub more likely than ever.
Regular rumors claim that Apple has been working on a central smart home controller, known as the Home Hub and code-named J490, for a number of years. However, while seemingly getting within reach of a release to the public, consumers will have to wait longer for the fabled hardware to arrive.
According to Mark Gurman in Sunday’s “Power On” newsletter for Bloomberg, the Home Hub was postponed due to it relying on a number of updates to Siri. Originally planned for iOS 18.4, those updates have yet to arrive, which also means features of the hub wouldn’t have worked either.
This apparently would’ve allowed Siri to take advantage of a user’s screen and personal data to fulfill queries, using the smart home network. It was also supposedly dependent on Apple Intelligence App Intents, enabling Siri more control over apps and functions.
As it stands, Gurman has little to no expectation of a 2025 release of the Home Hub. It is more likely to appear in 2026, alongside the updated Siri that it needs to operate fully.
Gurman generally has a good track record when it comes to Apple leaks and rumors, making the latest newsletter claim seem quite plausible.
A rocky runway
This is not the first time that Gurman has brought up the Home Hub delays, as he said the same thing in April. Again, Siri’s delays were to blame for the hardware being pushed out of 2025 and into 2026.
In January, Gurman was more hopeful about the Home Hub, insisting that a launch was still expected in late 2025.
While the project is slower to arrive than previously anticipated, there continue to be reports that it is still an active project within Apple. In March, it was claimed the hub was undergoing real-world testing by select Apple employees.
In June, code in the developer beta for iOS 18.6 appeared to reference a display that could be the Home Hub. If correct, it could have a screen measuring 2,176 pixels wide, and a physical size in the same ballpark as an iPad mini.
