Apple TV and the company’s plans for home automation might not seem like an obvious fit, but it looks like the set top box could end up serving as a hub for your entire smart home system. Apple released a new software beta for its smart TV puck on Tuesday, inadvertently revealing that the device is slated to receive HomeKit support.
The center of a connected smart home could soon be the Apple TV, as Apple’s latest beta software officially brings HomeKit support to its $99 streaming set-top box. As first discovered by AppleInsider, Apple’s own notes for Apple TV Software beta 2 released on Tuesday note that the pre-release build “includes support for Family Sharing and can be used for testing AirPlay and HomeKit with your iOS apps.” Apple had acknowledged as much in one prerelease version of the Apple TV operating system, but appeared to remove the functionality when released last month.
