Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

How Parks Associates Helped Shape 30 Years of Smart Home Innovation

In a video interview from CONNECTIONS 2026 in the Silicon Valley, Elizabeth Parks reflects on the evolution of the connected home market, the growing role of AI and why the dealer channel still matters in an increasingly automated world.

Parks Associates brought its CONNECTIONS conference back to Santa Clara, Calif., May 4-6, for its 30th anniversary edition, a milestone for a firm that has spent four decades tracking the evolution of the connected home market. From the early days of home networking and automation to today’s AI-powered ecosystems, the annual conference has long served as a gathering point for manufacturers, service providers, dealers and technology executives trying to understand where the market is heading next.

As part of my coverage from the event, I sat down with Elizabeth Parks for a conversation that touched on both the industry’s past and the increasingly complicated future now taking shape around AI, interoperability, cybersecurity and the connected consumer. During the discussion, Parks reflected on how many of today’s smart home conversations mirror ideas the industry was already discussing decades ago — only now with far more sophisticated technology behind them.

Parks said that dynamic places enormous pressure on companies to deliver a strong first experience because consumers who encounter friction early may never move deeper into the category.

We also discussed the growing challenge facing dealers and installers as AI-enabled products and services rapidly enter the market. While Parks acknowledged the pace of innovation may outstrip how quickly many integrators can adapt, she emphasized the importance of manufacturers continuing to support dealer channels through training, programs and workforce development efforts.

Toward the end of the conversation, Parks pointed to cybersecurity and data privacy as areas she believes will become much larger concerns across the connected home landscape in the years ahead, even as AI continues to dominate industry conversations.

Watch the full video interview for more from Elizabeth Parks on the evolution of the smart home market, what still surprises her after three decades of research and where she believes the industry is heading next.

From the article, "How Parks Associates Helped Shape 30 Years of Smart Home Innovation" by Rodney Bosch

Previously In The News

Eurobites: Germany Finds Another €1.3B for Broadband

The number of smart home controllers used in western Europe is set to soar, from just 100,000 in 2015 to more than 9 million in 2020, according to new research from Parks Associates . The growing use...

Nothing Good On: Losing It About The Apple TV

If it doesn’t sell as many units as the marquee products of the most profitable technology company in the world, it’s a disappointment. You really are single-handedly keeping Ned in business, aren’...

Generation App Gap: Millennials' Tech Embrace Dwarfs Boomers, Xers

"The most important demographic factor in terms of mobile app usage continues to be age," said Harry Wang, Senior Director of Research at Parks Associates. "Millennials have higher usage rates for nea...

The Return of Offload: Sticking Plaster or Preventative Medicine?

Indeed, in a recent survey carried out by industry analysis provider Parks Associates, two thirds of consumers who were considering switching mobile providers rated managed access to WiFi as part of t...

Phone:
972-490-1113
Mailing Address:
2301 West Plano Parkway, Suite 210, Plano, TX 75075
Expertise
Smart Home: Management and Safety Consumer Electronics Connected Health and Wellness Connectivity and Mobility Small-to-medium Business (SMB) MDU
Services
Research Memberships Visibility Memberships Streaming Video Tracker Smart Home and Security Tracker Broadband Market Tracker Channel Analytics
Events
CONNECTIONS™ CONNECTIONS™ Summit/CES Smart Energy Summit Connected Health Summit Future Of Video Smart Spaces
Resources
Press Releases Analyst Blog Parks in the News
Store
View Your Cart
About Us
Overview Team Contact Us Privacy Policy

Follow:

© 2023-2026 Parks Associates. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy

Design & Developed By Agency Partner Interactive