Is the End of Smart Homes Just Air Conditioning? A Technological Revolution in Housing Driven by User Demand
During the 2024 National People’s Congress, the term “new productive forces” emerged as a hot topic, with smart homes being a prime example, now facing unprecedented development opportunities. In July of last year, smart homes were included in the national consumption subsidy scope, accelerating the industry’s shift towards high-quality development. However, this multi-billion-dollar market is experiencing a fragmented evolution. On one hand, the downturn in the real estate sector has led to a decline in traditional distribution channels for home goods, causing many smart home stores to shrink and transition to “backpacker” business models. On the other hand, the demand for whole-home smart systems has surged among younger homeowners, particularly those born in the ’90s and ’95s, who are planning smart systems from the renovation stage.
Data from third parties indicates that by 2024, the penetration rate of individual smart home products in China will exceed 40%, but the installation rate of whole-home smart systems remains under 8%. “Consumers think that buying a few smart switches means they have a smart home? True whole-home intelligence requires planning over 20 service nodes from the start,” said an industry expert.
The price war has also intensified anxiety within the industry, with the basic package for smart homes dropping from around 100,000 yuan to a threshold price of 2,999 yuan; however, service providers must make multiple visits to complete debugging and maintenance. The contradiction between low customer spending and high service costs is forcing the industry to find breakthrough points.
Breaking Through: The “Entry Revolution” of Air Conditioning, Transforming from a Cooling Tool to the Hub of Smart Homes
“At this time, a super product emerged! It directly transforms central air conditioning into the entry point for smart homes. Imagine: your thermostat is a smart switch, and the air conditioning system links with all home devices. For service providers, this type of high-value product can increase customer spending while driving subsequent value-added services!”
According to Wang Shengyang, Executive Secretary of the CSHIA Smart Home Industry Alliance, “In the end, it’s about who can let users truly experience high technology without feeling it!” From last year to this year, companies like Eurorobo and Xiaomi have launched smart central air conditioning systems that upgrade traditional temperature control devices into “thinking butlers.” For instance, Eurorobo’s integrated air conditioning combines central air conditioning, water heaters, and floor heating into one system through a fusion of smart AI and new energy heat pump technology.
Eurorobo creatively employs Heatcycle’s efficient heat recovery technology, utilizing waste heat from air conditioning units to generate hot water for the entire home while meeting user needs for cooling, heating, and hot water. Its built-in AIoT control module can link with all home devices, turning central air conditioning into a family energy management center. Industry observers note that “As an essential household appliance, air conditioning naturally possesses high-frequency interaction attributes, making its transformation into a smart entry point cost-effective.”
Academician Liu Ke, Director of the Clean Energy Research Institute at Southern University of Science and Technology, states that as Eurorobo uses AI and heat pump technology to transform air conditioning into a household hub, competition in smart homes elevates to energy management levels, with products like Tesla’s Powerwall and Huawei’s home photovoltaic systems showing similar trends. A recent report by the internationally renowned research firm IDC predicts that by 2026, smart home devices equipped with energy management functions will capture 30% of the market share, with an annual compound growth rate of 45%.
The Truth: The Overemphasis on Control Screens May Be the Industry’s Biggest Misunderstanding
As global carbon neutrality efforts accelerate, the transformation of energy structures profoundly impacts the smart home industry. With natural gas prices continuing to rise and electricity costs nearing zero, coupled with breakthroughs in AI and heat pump technology, the air conditioning sector is entering a new wave of technological revolution. The previous emphasis on control screens within smart homes might be the biggest misunderstanding. Today’s consumers are becoming increasingly rational and sensitive to product efficiency, pricing, and long-term usage costs. The core trend in the residential market over the next decade will be “efficiency first,” with whole-home system appliances becoming a necessity.
Integrated air conditioning, as a frequently used product, can effectively lower the barriers to whole-home intelligence by integrating environmental sensing, smart interaction, and energy management functions, aligning with consumers’ practical needs. It is foreseeable that utilizing integrated air conditioning products to drive the whole-home smart ecosystem is one of the viable paths for the current smart home industry.
According to Wang Xionghui, founder and CEO of Eurorobo, “In the new economic cycle, integrated central air conditioning is the best entry point for smart homes, and the DTC (Direct to Consumer) model is the core engine for reshaping the industry landscape. Whole-home smart ecosystem operations are the ultimate answer to navigating through cycles.” Eurorobo’s strategy of combining “integrated air conditioning + whole-home intelligence” with the MixDTC model is achieving growth against the trend, with store average spending increasing from 30,000 yuan to over 100,000 yuan.
A smart home service provider in Shanghai stated, “Now, a single air conditioning project can yield the profit of three whole-home solutions from the past, and it can be extended to energy management services.” Additionally, nearly 60% of users have ordered Eurorobo’s “integrated air conditioning + whole-home intelligence” package even before finalizing their home design.
Looking Ahead: From Individual Intelligence to Energy Ecosystems
As the industry debates whether the end of smart homes is air conditioning, the essence lies in exploring what type of smart solutions users are willing to pay for. A GfK survey indicates that 73% of consumers pay to “solve specific pain points” rather than for abstract concepts. The breakthrough of air conditioning confirms this: the experience of automatic cooling upon entering in summer is far more tangible than the abstract idea of “interconnected everything.”
In the future, the smart home battlefield may further diversify, with one segment continuing to focus on super products like air conditioning and refrigerators, while another delves into invisible services such as energy management and security alerts. The true trend is that all household infrastructure is redefining its position within the smartization process. As air conditioning becomes an energy manager, refrigerators turn into health service centers, and curtains upgrade to energy collectors, we will eventually enter the “unconscious smart” era.
Many industry experts believe that the smart upgrade of air conditioning is just the beginning. Eurorobo has launched an integrated air conditioning system that combines air conditioning, water heating, and floor heating; companies like Haier and Midea are also positioning themselves within household water systems and integrated solar energy solutions. According to data from the China Building Energy Efficiency Association, building energy consumption accounts for 40% of total societal energy use, with HVAC systems making up more than half of that, indicating a vast market potential. “The future of smart homes will no longer be about simple device interconnections, but about building household microgrids that achieve self-sufficiency and efficient energy use,” says Academician Liu Ke. As the carbon neutrality strategy progresses, the smart home revolution sparked by central air conditioning is reshaping the future of the entire technology-driven housing industry.
