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Home Assistant is changing the name of its optional Home Assistant Cloud subscription to Home Assistant Link. Founder Paulus Schoutsen says the change is mostly symbolic: the service retains its features and pricing, while the platform continues to prioritize local smart-home control and work to reduce its learning curve.
Home Assistant is renaming Home Assistant Cloud to Home Assistant Link, a mostly symbolic change that keeps the subscription’s existing features and prices while making clearer that the smart-home platform itself runs locally. Founder Paulus Schoutsen told The Verge the new name reflects the project’s opposition to cloud-dependent smart-home products, even as Link provides optional remote access and other internet-based services.
Schoutsen said the name change is not a shift away from the service’s core functions. Link will continue to let subscribers access their Home Assistant setup from outside their home network and use optional internet-connected features, including Alexa and Google voice-control integrations, text-to-speech, speech-to-text and encrypted backups. The report says the subscription costs $6.50 a month or $65 a year. Back-end improvements are intended to improve speed and reliability.
Home Assistant runs on local hardware and controls devices locally. Without a remote-access option, users generally cannot reach their setup when they are away from their home network. Link is optional: the report says users can use other methods to reproduce its functions, as they could with the former Home Assistant Cloud service.
Schoutsen said Link is operated by Nabu Casa, Home Assistant’s commercial partner, and that its traffic is encrypted. He said Link does not have access to users’ data. The service also supports development of the platform: according to the report, 60 percent of its profit goes to the Open Home Foundation, the nonprofit that runs Home Assistant.
Local Control and Remote Access
The renaming speaks to a tension for a platform built around local control and open smart-home systems: users may want to reach their homes remotely, but cloud-dependent products can stop working when a company closes a service. Link offers remote access and online features without making the subscription a requirement for using Home Assistant itself, according to the report.
The issue has practical consequences for consumers. Schoutsen cited products whose functions were affected when cloud services were shut down, including early Nest thermostats and Weber’s June Oven. The report describes those examples as part of his argument against relying on a manufacturer’s servers for a product’s basic operation. His preferred approach is for devices to work locally and use open standards such as Matter, Zigbee, Z-Wave, MQTT and ESPHome.
For Home Assistant, the challenge is to make those choices accessible beyond technically experienced users. The project has an estimated 2.7 million installations, Schoutsen told The Verge, but the report says that remains far below the reach of major smart-home platforms. Easier setup could help it attract more households without giving up its broad device support.
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From Cloud Naming to Easier Setup
Home Assistant is an open-source smart-home platform that can run on a user’s own hardware and manage compatible devices locally. Its flexibility is also a usability challenge: Schoutsen told The Verge that the wide range of possible integrations and configurations can overwhelm people accustomed to simpler mainstream products.
The Home Assistant Cloud name had also created confusion, Schoutsen said, because some prospective users took it to mean that Home Assistant itself runs in the cloud. The service was not mandatory, but its name sat awkwardly beside the project’s criticism of products that depend on remote servers. Changing Cloud to Link addresses the branding and clarity problem; it does not remove the optional online services.
The announcement comes alongside a broader effort to lower the platform’s entry barrier. Schoutsen said the team is working on simpler dashboards and a more intuitive setup process. The report says the community-built HACS integration store is planned for integration into Home Assistant the following month, making community integrations easier to find and install. A more user-friendly successor to the Home Assistant Green hub is planned for next year, though the report does not give a launch date or specifications.
“We are renaming Home Assistant Cloud to Home Assistant Link, because we hate clouds.”
— Paulus Schoutsen, Home Assistant founder, speaking to The Verge
Link’s Limits and Product Plans
The report describes the name change and planned improvements but does not provide a precise date for when the Link branding will appear for all subscribers. It also gives no technical detail on the back-end changes, or independent verification of Schoutsen’s statements about data access and encryption.
Several usability initiatives remain plans rather than completed releases. The report does not specify when the next-generation hub will ship, what it will cost or which hardware it will support. The planned HACS integration is described as due the following month, but no rollout details are provided. The supplied report also introduces a “No Device Left Behind” program and says Nabu Casa is developing devices to connect existing analog or legacy equipment, but the available material does not explain which devices are in development or when they may be released.
It is also unclear how many users will choose Link rather than alternative remote-access methods, or whether easier onboarding will materially change Home Assistant’s reach. The 2.7 million installation estimate is Schoutsen’s figure as reported by The Verge, not a comparative measurement supplied with a matching count for rival platforms.
Upcoming Hub and Onboarding Changes
Home Assistant’s next test is whether its usability work can bring new users in without reducing the platform’s flexibility. According to Schoutsen, the team plans to make setup and dashboards simpler, integrate HACS into the main platform the following month, and release a more approachable hub next year. Those milestones could make it easier to install integrations and get started, but specific release dates and product details have not been reported.
Schoutsen also said the team wants to help consumers identify products that do not depend entirely on cloud services, including through a database of devices. The report gives no launch date or coverage information for that effort. For now, the confirmed immediate change is the Cloud-to-Link renaming; Link’s core offer and subscription prices remain in place.
Key Questions
What is Home Assistant Link?
Home Assistant Link is the new name for Home Assistant Cloud, an optional subscription that provides remote access to a Home Assistant setup and features such as voice integrations, speech services and encrypted backups.
Does Home Assistant require Link to work?
No. The report says Link is optional. Home Assistant can run locally, and users can use other methods to arrange remote access or related features.
How much does Home Assistant Link cost?
The reported subscription prices are $6.50 per month or $65 per year. The report says the name change does not otherwise alter the service’s main features.
Why is Home Assistant changing the name?
Founder Paulus Schoutsen said the project objects to cloud-dependent smart-home products, and that the old name confused some people into thinking Home Assistant itself ran in the cloud. The Link name is intended to distinguish optional remote access from the platform’s local operation.
When will the new Home Assistant hub be available?
Schoutsen told The Verge that a more user-friendly successor to Home Assistant Green is planned for next year. The report does not give a specific release date, price or hardware specifications.
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