From Zigbee to Matter: IKEA updates its ecosystem and makes it compatible with Apple HomeKit
IKEA has decided to make life easier for owners of smart homes: the company is betting on the Matter standard. To ensure compatibility of its low-cost devices with Apple HomeKit, it announces the release of more than 20 new Matter-over-Thread gadgets from January 2026. These include lights, sensors, gauges, remotes, and air quality monitors - all of which work in Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and SmartThings ecosystems, even without Dirigera's native hub.
What's changed
Dirigera received a beta update in the spring that added the roles of Matter Controller and Thread Border Router, opening up access to other brands' devices through the IKEA Home Smart app. Prior to this, Dirigera was only a Matter hub for existing Zigbee devices. Now, however, IKEA devices are becoming a full-fledged part of the "seamless" ecosystem, without requiring the user to choose a platform - be it Apple, Google or Amazon.
What is Matter and why it matters to IKEA (and to all of us)
Matter isn't just another standard that no one will ever know about. It's actually a common language for all smart devices in the home. It's designed to break the chaos where a light bulb only works with one platform, a thermostat works with another, and a camera doesn't connect to anything at all but a native app from 2014.
Matter is being developed by CSA (Connectivity Standards Alliance), with participation from Apple, Google, Amazon, Samsung and other giants. It's not just "something new," but a united front of tech competitors finally agreeing that users are sick of living in a "compatibility zoo."
What it delivers:
- Single compatibility: the same motion sensor can work with Apple HomeKit, Google Home, Alexa, and Samsung SmartThings - no additional bridges, converters, or "prayers."
- Security out of the box: Matter uses IP, encryption and modern protocols (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Thread), so it doesn't require constant updates and VPN "dances".
- Thread is Matter's brother: it's a wireless protocol that replaces Zigbee. It's fast, energy efficient and allows devices to create a "Mesh" network (i.e. work through each other without a centre).
Why this is a game changer for IKEA
IKEA has long relied on cheap but limited Zigbee. Matter allows it to make its gadgets truly universal - to work not only with its own Dirigera hub, but also without it, straight off an iPhone or Google Nest.
So now you can buy a light bulb from IKEA, scan it through Apple's Home app, and that's it. No hubs. No registration. No "Android only."
Source: IKEA
