Feed: Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics
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Title: As Apple pursues AI, spare a thought for the poor HomePod

Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2025 22:32:50 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/as-a...

When the video kicking off Apple's "Awe dropping" event began yesterday, I
was pleased to see a HomePod in the opening shot. I hadn't given any thought
to Apple's beleaguered smart home speaker in ages, so I was all set for Tim
Cook and crew to deliver an actual surprise and reveal new stuff for HomePod.
When the entire presentation then passed without another peep about the
product, I was disappointed, but resigned.

HomePod has always been behind the curve. When smart speakers first came on
the scene, the sector was quickly dominated by Amazon and Google, with Sonos
as the boutique third-party option. Apple announced the HomePod in June 2017,
almost three years after Amazon unveiled its original Echo speaker.

The HomePod arrived too slow and cost too much, and (in an echo of the
company's current woes) Siri was too unhelpful, for the smart speaker to
really claw back much market share from its rivals. The Mini iteration came
out in late 2020, and the second-generation HomePod in February 2023 added
support for Thread smart home standard. Not exactly pushing the boundaries of
smart speaker innovation.

And things got worse for the poor HomePod as voice-controlled AI assistants
have transitioned away from being centered around dedicated speakers. AI is
now being integrated ever-more tightly into our smartphones and computers,
with less need for a separate intermediary device. Which brings us to the
ongoing issue of Apple's shaky foothold in the AI race.

Apple has been promising a big overhaul to Siri for awhile, with the new and
improved version currently not due until spring 2026. To show off that new AI
assistant, Apple is reportedly working on an interactive smart home hub that
is expected to have HomePod-like audio capabilities baked in, but won't be
ready for launch until at least 2027. What's a company to do in the interim?

It makes sense for Apple to hold back on any big developments to its existing
Siri-centric smart home speaker. I get it. But I could have been hyped to see
a stripped down HomePod that focused more on being a speaker than on being
smart. I have a Sonos that I love, and part of me assumed that I would
eventually upgrade to an Apple offering. The AirPods are such a great element
in the Apple ecosystem, and I use mine almost daily. Having a powerful, high-
quality home speaker that delivers the easy interconnectivity that's such a
big part of Apple's value proposition might have helped bridge the time gap,
keeping Apple in people's minds as a player in home tech while the company
works on its next, more innovative move. Take one step back to take three
steps forward.

In practice, though, it feels like the window for the HomePod to become a
star in Apple's lineup has shrunk to almost nothing. As I now look at the
recent trends in AI and home tech, I don't see an obvious space for a smart
speaker. That's not limited to Apple; it's also pretty telling that both
Amazon and Google haven't been giving much love to their smart speakers
either. In fact, a majority of Engadget's favorite smart speakers this year
are from specialist Sonos as the big tech names have put their focus on AI
instead of audio. We'll still have smart speakers, but they'll be folded into
multi-purpose gadgets and pitched as general smart-home aids.

To be clear, there's been no indication that Apple will sunset the HomePod.
But my personal prediction is that HomePod will stay on the sidelines for now
and get pushed even farther away from the spotlight when the new smart home
products are unveiled, receiving only occasional attention until Apple
officially and quietly pulls the plug for good. And so will end the life of a
star-crossed product that never got the chance to shine at its full
potential. Here's hoping I'm wrong.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/as-a...
for-the-poor-homepod-223250670.html?src=rss

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