In a move that was always going to happen, Athom have announced that LG ThinQ devices and appliances now work with Homey.
The new LG ThinkQ app gives Homey Pro and Homey Cloud users access to all 30 types of LG ThinQ devices, including the likes of washing machines, ovens, TVs, soundbars, refrigerators, robot vacuum cleaners and a whole lot more.
In case you didn’t know, LG ramped up its smart home efforts in July last year by snapping up the Dutch brand Athom, maker of the popular line of Homey smart home hubs.
The acquisition saw LG take an 80% stake of Athom, with the next 20% due to change hands over the next three years.
At the time of the acquisition we were told that Athom would “continue to operate independently, maintaining its business operations and branding,” which is a similar approach to what Samsung took with SmartThings after snapping up the startup in 2014.
The move to incorporate ThinQ devices into the Homey ecosystem is the first real sign of the boundaries blurring, although Homey already works with a multitude of brands and platforms – we’re told that ThinQ is just one of more than a thousand brands the system is compatible with.
But it’s not just Homey that ThinQ is playing nicely with.
Last month we reported that LG had thrown open the doors to its smart home platform with the launch of its Application Programming Interface (API), making it easier for developers and brands to build smarter, more connected homes with LG appliances.
It’s clear that LG isn’t now just focused on making smart appliances, but ensuring they can play nice with the rest of your smart home setup no matter which ecosystem you prefer.
