SwitchBot’s new AI Hub is a genuinely smart addition, and with native OpenClaw support, it takes smart home control to a whole new level of intuitive.
OpenClaw is the open-source AI assistant designed for real-world tasks, and SwitchBot is now baking that capability right into the hub. Forget jumping between different apps or tackling confusing setups; the AI Hub allows you to manage everything simply by sending natural language messages through platforms you use every day, like WhatsApp, iMessage, or Discord.
The OpenClaw update is set to arrive via an over-the-air (OTA) push at the end of February. Once active, it turns the AI Hub into a powerful, local home AI agent. This means you can hook up to various large-language models and use them to automate everything from your lighting and security to appliances.
By keeping OpenClaw’s deep system-level access contained on the dedicated hub, SwitchBot also thoughtfully handles security concerns, ensuring a safe environment for all your AI operations.
But the AI Hub doesn’t just stop with OpenClaw. It’s also the first edge hub to feature visual language model (VLM) capabilities, giving it an almost humanlike ability to understand what’s happening in your home.
When paired with SwitchBot cameras and video doorbells, it can recognise specific real-world events, like someone taking a tumble or a pet escaping, and immediately send context-rich alerts.
This is a significant leap beyond basic motion detection, allowing the system to learn routines and even proactively suggest actions, such as unlocking a smart lock when a recognised family member approaches the door.
For the tech-savvy, it also functions as a powerful Network Video Recorder (NVR) with built-in Frigate integration, supporting up to eight cameras, complete with face recognition and locally stored data expandable up to 16 TB. Finding a specific moment in your footage is simple thanks to the AI-powered video search, and daily home reports keep you informed without the noise of constant notifications.
SwitchBot’s Skills platform will integrate with OpenClaw in March, finally enabling sophisticated cross-platform automation with Home Assistant, Apple Home, and Google Home. This means you’ll be able to control devices across these different ecosystems using straightforward, conversational commands.
Supporting over 100 SwitchBot devices, acting as a Matter bridge for up to 30 products, and featuring dual-band Wi-Fi, the AI Hub is seriously engineered to be the undisputed central brain of any modern smart home.
SwitchBot’s AI Hub brilliantly combines OpenClaw support with high-end AI analysis and seamless automation. It is more than just a piece of hardware; it’s a truly conversational, proactive assistant that makes smart home management feel genuinely effortless.
