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The future of the smart home market

Catherine Hiley headshot
We analyse the future of the smart home market by reviewing the top smart home startups from Crunchbase and the number of smart home patent applications.
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Header image for the future of smart home markets.
Header image for the future of smart home markets.

From smart lighting to smart thermostats, tech companies are making more intelligent products than ever before. Although tech giants like Amazon, Google, and Apple are at the forefront, it's the startup space where many of these new ideas and inventions are uncovered.

With that in mind, we’ve analysed the top 1,000 highest funded smart home startups on Crunchbase along with patent application data from 2011 to 2021 to reveal global trends in the industry and discover how this intelligent technology will shape the future.

Which countries are leading the way in smart home startups?

Smart home tech startups are on the rise all over the world. However, like many other sectors, the majority of smart home tech companies are located in the United States, which is home to 393 of them. Other leading countries include China, with 118, and the UK with 66.

Map of the world that shows the number of global smart home start-ups by country.
Map of the world that shows the number of global smart home start-ups by country.

Where are smart home startups receiving the most funding?

Looking at how successful countries are in attracting funding, the countries coming out on top include the US, China, Germany, the UK and Canada. The US takes the lead with a huge $7 billion in funding, whereas China, in second place, has attracted over $700 million.

Graphic that shows which countries have the most and least funded smart home start-ups.
Graphic that shows which countries have the most and least funded smart home start-ups.

Which companies have filed the most patents?

Patents are regularly being filed to allow inventors to develop new smart home technology. A number of big tech giants make the list when it comes to the most patents filed, but the company that’s filing the most is Samsung with 4229. The table below provides an insight into the competitive smart home tech landscape.

Table that shows which companies have the most filed patents.
Table that shows which companies have the most filed patents.

How many patent applications have been made year on year?

The graph below highlights the number of patent applications per year between 2011-2020. Although 2020 saw a slight dip, which is likely due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the numbers overall illustrate an increase in filings over the last 10 years. This points to a continued rise in smart homes in the years to come.

Graph that shows how many patent applications have been submitted by year.
Graph that shows how many patent applications have been submitted by year.

Methodology:

Data on smart home startups was gathered using Crunchbase. Companies were filtered by category ‘Smart home’ and ‘highest total funding’ to reveal the top 1,000 companies. Data was pulled 02/06/2021. Data on patents from 2011-2021 was taken from WIPO Patentscope by an export using their own tool based on a search for the term “smart home.” Data was pulled 01/06/2021. All data available on request.