SwitchBot AI Hub: New smart home hub with VLM shown
IFA 2025More details about the SwitchBot AI Hub have been shared at IFA 2025. Introduced in May 2025, this smart home hub is currently on show at the event in Berlin. The company claims that this is the world’s first AI hub with Visual Language Model (VLM) support.
The SwitchBot AI Hub uses VLM to detect events and translate them to text, which can be used to trigger smart home devices. For this subscription-based feature, the hub must be paired with one of three supported smart cameras: the Smart Video Doorbell, the Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 2K Plus or the Pan/Tilt Cam 3K Plus (curr. $69.99 at Amazon).
An example of the SwitchBot AI Hub’s text translation tool using video footage is shown in a YouTube video (below). Here, someone is identied as "in a dark room" and "reading a book". According to Switchbot, this could then trigger smart lights in the room. Another use for this feature is a text search of captured video footage. For example, you could search for “Show me when I left my phone”. Plus, daily event summaries will be available in the SwitchBot app.
SwitchBot’s AI hub has 32 GB built-in storage, expandable up to 1 TB, with local data storage and processing. It is said to be able to connect to over 100 smart home devices, with support for Matter Over Bridge, Bluetooth and dual-band 2.4GHz/5GHz Wi-Fi. It remains to be seen when the SwitchBot AI Hub will be released and at what price.
Source(s)
Switchbot, Press Release
