Smart home appliances and consumer electronics

The devices in the hand and the home, connected to an app

Many new washing machines in India come with an app. You can start a wash from your phone, and the machine tells you when it is done. A light bulb can change colour on a voice command, and a doorbell can send a video of the visitor to your phone. Each of these devices is now a small computer.

What makes a device connected. A connected device has three layers of software:

Firmware

the software that runs on the device's own chip, and controls its motor, heater or light.

The app

it lets the owner control the device from a phone.

The cloud

the maker's servers, which link the device to the app, collect its data and send it updates.

A connected washing machine runs three layers of software: firmware on its own chip that controls the motor and heater, the maker's cloud that links the machine to the app and sends updates, and the app on the owner's phone. Appliance makers such as Electrolux Group, Whirlpool and BSH Home Appliances Group build much of this software in Bengaluru and Pune.

The industry calls such devices the internet of things, or IoT. A home in which devices work together, such as lights, locks, cameras and thermostats, is called a smart home.

How the business works. Appliance makers sell through shops and online, to families. They earn little on each machine, and compete on price and features. Connected features help a brand stand out. They also bring new income, from subscriptions such as home-security monitoring, and from data on how the machines are used. That data also helps the maker plan service and design the next model.

Why appliance makers hire software engineers. A washing machine or an oven now needs firmware, an app and a cloud service. Several of the world's appliance makers build these in their centres in Bengaluru and Pune.

New kinds of device. A few Bengaluru start-ups are building new devices of their own, such as a robot that cooks a meal, and a ring that tracks health.

Every company named here has posted software engineering jobs in India. Famous companies that don't actively hire software engineers in India are left out.

Who makes what, in the two sub-segments below: appliances and the connected home (Electrolux Group, Whirlpool and BSH Home Appliances Group in kitchen and laundry, Signify in lighting, Resideo and SimpliSafe in comfort and security, Posha and Nosh in cooking robots, Libre Wireless Technology in smart-speaker modules), and the devices you carry and use (Motorola Mobility (Lenovo), Logitech, Muse Wearables and Project Mirage).

This Market Segment has two sub-segments:

Appliances and the connected home: kitchen and laundry appliances, lighting, thermostats and home security

The devices you carry and use: phones, computer accessories, and new wearable and AI devices

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Appliances and the connected home
The devices you carry and use

Appliances and the connected home

Connected home appliances, smart lighting, home comfort and security, cooking robots, smart-home modules

Kitchen and laundry appliances

Electrolux Group

the Swedish appliance maker, has engineers in Bengaluru. It builds the software and connected features of its washing machines, fridges and ovens there. Electrolux has the most job postings in this Market Segment.

Whirlpool

the American appliance maker, runs its global technology centre in Pune.

BSH Home Appliances Group

the maker of Bosch and Siemens appliances, does the same in Bengaluru. BSH Home Appliances is part of the same business.

Lighting

Signify

formerly Philips Lighting, with engineers in Bengaluru and Pune, makes lighting and the connected Philips Hue system.

Home comfort and security

Resideo

with engineers in Bengaluru, makes thermostats, security panels and smoke detectors, under the Honeywell Home and First Alert names. A thermostat controls the heating or cooling in a home.

SimpliSafe

with engineers in Bengaluru, sells home security systems in America that owners install themselves.

Robots that cook

Posha and Nosh

are Bengaluru start-ups. Each makes a countertop robot that cooks a meal from ingredients loaded into it.

Parts for smart speakers

Libre Wireless Technology

makes the voice and audio modules inside smart speakers. A module is a small ready-made board that a device maker builds into its own product.

Two more companies work in this area: FANPLAY IoT, in Bengaluru, and Fond Vet Tech.

The devices you carry and use

Phones, computer peripherals, smart rings, AI interface devices

Phones and computer accessories

Logitech

with engineers in Chennai, makes keyboards, mice, webcams and headsets. The industry calls these peripherals: devices that plug into a computer.

Motorola Mobility (Lenovo)

now part of Lenovo, with engineers in Bengaluru, designs Motorola phones. (More on Lenovo in Market Segment 3.2, Server and storage hardware, in Industry Vertical 3, Data centres and servers.)

New wearable and AI devices

Muse Wearables

with engineers in Bengaluru, makes a smart ring. It tracks sleep and health, and can make payments with a tap. (More on devices that track health in Market Segment 22.6, Remote patient monitoring (RPM), in Industry Vertical 22, Digital health.)

Project Mirage

with engineers in Bengaluru, is building AI-powered devices for talking to machines.

The appliance that talks back.

Home appliances gained apps about ten years ago, and it made little difference. AI models now let an appliance understand a spoken request, recognise the food in an oven and plan a wash to suit the fabric. Devices designed around an AI model rather than a screen form a new category. A ring, a pin that clips to clothing and a cooking robot are examples. Bengaluru's start-ups are among those building them.

That is the market for devices at home and in the hand: appliances, lights and security systems that now carry firmware, an app and a cloud service. Global appliance makers build much of that software in Bengaluru and Pune, and Bengaluru start-ups are building new devices around AI.

Who they hire

Who these companies hire, and for what, is on What electronics and device companies hire for.

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