Gladys Assistant adds Matter support
Gladys Assistant integrates Matter for wider device control, simplified setup, and enhanced reliability in this open-source platform.
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The Gladys Assistant platform has announced integration with Matter, enabling control of devices over Wi-Fi, Thread, or a Matter bridge.
Positioned as a privacy-first, open source home automation platform, Gladys Assistant offers a smart user interface and can run on a range of hardware, including NAS boxes, mini-PCs, Raspberry Pi, and even Android and iOS.
Gladys Assistant gets Matter
Here is the announcement video. Gladys Assistant is developed in France, so you’ll need the translation tool activated in YouTube.
The main takeaways from this are that Matter will enable Gladys Assistant to enjoy:
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Broader device compatibility: Matter will allow Gladys to integrate and control a much wider range of smart home devices from different manufacturers, rather than handling individual APIs.
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Simplified development: Using Matter as a unified protocol should enable a more streamlined development process for integrations, reducing development time.
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Enhanced user experience: The Matter onboarding process should make adding new devices to Gladys much simpler.
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Increased reliability and stability: Matter’s emphasis on local control and reducing reliance on cloud services should enable the connected home, and Gladys' control over it, to become more stable. A Gladys-based Matter setup will be less prone to internet outages or cloud service disruptions. This also aligns with the open source ethos of Gladys, which gives users privacy and control over their data.
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Future-proofing Gladys Assistant: Matter is increasingly seen as the future of smart homes, and it seems Gladys developers see the benefit of getting on board early.
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Empowering advanced users: Gladys can potentially interact with older or niche devices that don't natively support Matter thanks to plugins and Matter Bridge devices. Advanced Gladys users could extend the platform's capabilities by creating their own integrations.
Because Gladys Assistant is designed for DIY setups, it doesn't support Thread by default as this requires dedicated hardware. Instead, a Thread Border Router will need to be connected to the Gladys Assistant device. You can build your own Thread Border Router, if uou don't already have one in a device like the Aqara Hub M3.
Aqara Hub M3
The Aqara Hub M3 is a Matter-compatible gateway that connects and manages up to 128 smart devices, facilitating local device automation without relying on Wi-Fi.
Overall, there are some key similarities between Gladys’ adoption of Matter and that of Home Assistant. The main difference, however, is that Gladys Assistant is some way behind Home Assistant when it comes to Matter.
Open source competition
Of course, this isn’t the only open source home automation tool to adopt Matter. Home Assistant recently unveiled it has Matter certification, and both systems can be run on mini computers.
You can learn more about Gladys Assistant and get the download link from the website.
About the Author
Christian Cawley
Editor in Chief
Christian has been writing about technology since the mid 2000s, and has been published in numerous publications, online and in print. These include Android Magazine, Linux User & Developer, Linux Format, Tech Radar, Tom's Hardware, and Computer Active. From 2014-2024, he was a section editor and later deputy editor at MakeUseOf, before joining the Matter Alpha team. Christian enjoys old video games (mainly C64, Amiga, and MS-DOS), classic TV, and telling everyone who will listen that they should have a robot cleaner. When he's not shaping articles, Christian is a dad to three dancers, collects Lego, and is an avid home chef.
Aqara Hub M3
The Aqara Hub M3 is a Matter-compatible gateway that connects and manages up to 128 smart devices, facilitating local device automation without relying on Wi-Fi.